CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Cross-examination

Vera Baird: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs, what (a) advice and (b) training is given to judges to help them to deal with family cases in which there is an application by a party who faces an allegation of (i) domestic violence and (ii) sexual abuse to cross-examine the other party about those allegations.

Christopher Leslie: Judicial training is the responsibility of the Judicial Studies Board, an independent body chaired by Lord Justice Keene. In the Family Jurisdiction, where the alleged victim of domestic violence or sexual abuse is an adult, the alleged perpetrator who disputes the allegation is entitled to cross-examine the alleged victim. This is either in person if they are not legally represented, or by their advocate. The entitlement arises in the interests of justice and a fair trial. Where the alleged perpetrator exercises their entitlement to cross-examine, judges are taught of the need to balance the needs of justice with the needs of the alleged victims. Those needs of the alleged victim include not being subjected to any oppressive, insensitive, or unnecessarily prolonged questioning. If the alleged victim is a child, the child hardly ever gives evidence. His or her account is obtained earlier in an interview which is videoed.
	All judges trying cases of this gravity will have been trained among other things in the need for that sensitivity, as well as advised about the impact of domestic violence and sexual abuse on their victims.

TREASURY

Aggregates Tax

Alex Salmond: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer how much revenue has been raised by the Aggregate Tax in each quarter of its existence in (a) Scotland and (b) the UK.

John Healey: HM Customs and Excise routinely publishes UK Aggregates Levy receipts at http://www.uktradeinfo.com in the Aggregates Levy Bulletin.
	A breakdown of Aggregates Levy receipts by UK region is not available separately.

Audit Exemption Threshold

Stephen O'Brien: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the deregulatory measure to raise the audit exemption threshold was contained in the list of 147 regulations for reform or removal referred to by the Chancellor in his Pre-Budget Report statement of 10 December 2003.

John Healey: This deregulatory measure, which raised the audit exemption threshold to reduce the administrative burden on small companies, was not part of the list of 147 regulations for reform or removal referred to by the Chancellor in the 2003 Pre-Budget Report statement.
	The statutory audit threshold measure was part of the original Regulatory Reform Action Plan published in February 2002. 147 referred to the number of new measures added to the Regulatory Reform Action Plan since the previous figure was publicised at Budget 2003; at that time the Chancellor had announced there were over 500 deregulatory measures.

Britain in Europe

John Hayes: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make a statement on his meeting with representatives of Britain in Europe on 17 November 2004; what issues were discussed; whether civil servants were present; and in what capacity he attended.

Stephen Timms: The Chancellor attended Britain in Europe's board meeting on 17 November 2004, accompanied by his Private Secretary. A wide range of issues relating to Europe were discussed.

Child Trust Fund

Gordon Prentice: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many children in Pendle he estimates will benefit from the Child Trust Fund;
	(2)  how many children in Burnley he estimates will benefit from the Child Trust Fund.

Dawn Primarolo: All children born since 1 September 2002 in families awarded Child Benefit will receive a Child Trust Fund. In 2005–06 around 700,000 families will benefit from the Child Trust Fund across the country as a whole. No estimate is available of the number of children benefiting in Pendle. However, there were around 12,000 new births across Lancashire in 2003–04.
	The CTF is intended to encourage parents and children to develop the savings habit. It will ensure that every child born since 1 September 2002, whatever their family background, will have access to a stock of assets from the age of 18, so they can invest in their future.
	It will also help children and their parents to understand the benefits of saving and investment and how to engage with financial institutions.

Civil Servants

James Gray: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assurances he obtained from Sir Nicholas Montagu that he would not be consulting with PricewaterhouseCooper's clients on tax matters prior to granting him permission to join PWC.

Stephen Timms: Sir Nicholas Montagu complied with the requirements of the Business Appointment Rules, and applied for permission to take up his part-time appointment with PriceWaterhouseCoopers.
	In submitting his application, he stated that he would not advise on tax matters.
	The appointment was approved under the Rules subject to the conditions that:
	He should not be personally involved in lobbying, on behalf of PWC or its clients, the Inland Revenue for one year from his last day of service, and Government Ministers or officials in other Departments for six months from his last day of service; and
	Acknowledging that it is not part of the job to which he is being appointed, he should stand aside from any discussion of, or giving advice on any tax related matters for two years from his last day of service.

Correspondence

Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the Inland Revenue will reply to the letter of the right hon. Member for Birkenhead concerning his constituent, Miss Yardley.

Dawn Primarolo: The hon. Member wrote on 3 November 2004 and the Inland Revenue replied to him on 18 November and 8 December 2004.

Inland Revenue Informers

James Gray: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many Inland Revenue informers had their relationship terminated between 6 March 2000 and 28 July 2000; and how many Inland Revenue handling officers were posted elsewhere during this period.

Dawn Primarolo: The Inland Revenue does not keep any form of central record of persons providing information to them (informers). The Inland Revenue does keep central records of covert human intelligence sources. No relationship with a covert human intelligence source was terminated within the dates given. No Inland Revenue handler has been posted elsewhere.

Red Diesel

Michael Weir: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment his Department has made of the effect on the fishing industry of the proposed rise of 1p per litre in the rate of fuel duty for red diesel.

John Healey: holding answer 13 December 2004
	My right hon. Friend the Chancellor takes account of all relevant economic, social and environmental factors in determining duty rates.
	The excise duty paid by the fishing industry on marine fuel used for navigation within community waters is fully repayable, so that it is, in effect, duty free.

Red Diesel

Michael Weir: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment his Department has made of the effect on the agricultural industry of the proposed rise of 1p per litre in the rate of fuel duty on red diesel.

John Healey: holding answer 13 December 2004
	My right hon. Friend the Chancellor takes account of all relevant economic, social and environmental factors for all sectors, including the farming industry, in determining duty rates. The Department for Trade and Industry estimate that agriculture accounts for only a small proportion of red diesel consumption.

Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act

James Gray: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 on the use of covert human intelligence sources by Inland Revenue.

Dawn Primarolo: The Inland Revenue's use of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act, including the use of covert human intelligence sources, is monitored annually by the Office of the Surveillance Commissioners and is also subject to internal monitoring.

Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act

James Gray: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer who the (a) Commissioner of Inland Revenue and (b) Inland Revenue solicitor responsible for determining the impact of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 on the use of informers was.

Dawn Primarolo: The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act does not govern the use of informers except where those informers are also covert human intelligence sources. I refer the hon. Member to my answer to his companion question (204440).

Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act

James Gray: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether Inland Revenue conducted an impact assessment of the effects of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 on informers before its passage into law.

Dawn Primarolo: I believe the hon. Member is referring to the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act. That Act is Home Office legislation. In accordance with normal practice the Home Office would have prepared a regulatory impact assessment on the Act.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Betting Terminals

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will place in the Library a copy of the research commissioned by the Association of British Bookmakers into fixed-odds betting terminals to which the Minister for Sport referred on 2 December in Standing Committee B, Official Report, column 382.

Richard Caborn: It is for the Association of British Bookmakers to decide when and how to publish the results of the research which it has commissioned; but we have drawn this request to their attention.

Children's Play

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will break down the £200 million national funding for children's play announced by her predecessor in June 2001 by (a) financial year and (b) project; how much of the funding has been spent to date; and if she will make a statement.

Estelle Morris: The announcement to which the hon. Member refers related to round 4 of the New Opportunities Fund, and therefore future funding for play. The new approach to lottery funding with the establishment of the Big Lottery Fund means that the Government will no longer ring fence pots of money for particular activities such as play. However we still expect £200 million for play (across the UK) to come from the lottery over time.

Free Television Licences

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many pensioners aged over 75 years living in Coventry are entitled to a free television licence.

Estelle Morris: TV Licensing, who administer free television licences for people aged 75 or over as agents for the BBC, are not able to provide geographical breakdowns of the number of free licences issued. It is not therefore possible to estimate take-up of the concession on a local basis. However, the number of households with at least one person aged 75 or over claiming the winter fuel payment in the Coventry North East, Coventry North West and Coventry South constituencies in 2003–04 was 17,650, according to Department for Work and Pensions records.

Gambling/Casino Licences

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the guidance to be provided to local authorities on the provision of gambling and casino licences.

Richard Caborn: Clause 24 of the Gambling Bill provides for the Gambling Commission to issue guidance to local authorities about the exercise of their functions of the Bill, and to undertake consultation before doing so. We expect the Commission, when it is established, to take consultation forward as an early priority.

Travel Costs

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the total travel costs to her Department have been for (a) Ministers, (b) special advisers and (c) officials for each year since 1997.

Richard Caborn: holding answer 9 December 2004
	All official travel is undertaken in accordance with the rules contained in the Department's staff handbook and all Ministerial travel is undertaken fully in accordance with the rules set out in the Ministerial Code and Travel by Ministers, copies of which are available in the Libraries of the House.
	In respect of overseas travel by Ministers, since 1999 the Government has published an annual list of all visits overseas undertaken by Cabinet Ministers costing £500 or more during each financial year. The Government has also published on an annual basis the cost of all Ministers' visits overseas. Copies of the lists are available in the Libraries of the House.
	Travel costs of special advisers who accompanied the Ministers overseas are included in the annual list the Overseas Travel by Cabinet Ministers. Other travel costs of special advisers are included in the officials' travel costs on the Department's accounting system and can be disaggregated only at disproportionate cost.
	The following table shows expenditure on travel and subsistence by Ministers (domestic only) and officials in the Department from 1997–98 to 2003–04.
	
		£
		
			 Financial year Ministers T and S (domestic only) Officials (overseas and domestic T and S) 
		
		
			 2003–04 19,483.31 473,483.91 
			 2002–03 24,719.22 479,690.78 
			 2001–02 17,386.39 411,227.86 
			 2000–01 31,931.38 366,112.06 
			 1999–2000 24,539.59 362,767.76 
			 1998–99 22,913.88 252,990.17 
			 1997–98 11,697.81 256,166.64

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Departmental Advertising

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment in which Muslim newspapers the Department advertises; and what kinds of advertising the Department places in Muslim newspapers.

Alun Michael: In 2004–5 Defra is placing advertisements in the publications as listed. On this occasion, the department's objective in doing so is to reach and inform specific communities rather than religious groups, but all these publications are acknowledged as having a Muslim readership:
	The Daily Jang
	The Nation
	Muslim News
	Muslim Weekly
	Notun Din
	Surma
	Janamot
	Potrika
	Bangla Post
	London Turkish Gazette
	Olay
	Al Arab
	Al Ahram
	All the advertisements placed have been translated into the languages most appropriate for the readers of these newspapers. The advertising has been planned to promote the latest phase of Defra's personal food imports awareness campaign, 'If in doubt, leave it out!'. This campaign is part of a long-term strategy to increase awareness of the personal imports rules among the UK travelling public and to reduce the quantities of illegal food products being seized at UK ports and airports.
	It was developed following independent research, which revealed that the rules relating to personal imports of food were relevant to black and minority ethnic communities within the UK, but that awareness of the legislation within these communities was not widespread. The communications activity is intended to reach and engage with black and minority ethnic communities through communications and media channels relevant to them.
	Press advertising is only one communications option which the Department considers when planning a public awareness campaign and is evaluated alongside other paid and non-paid communications activity which may involve outreach work, distribution of bi-lingual printed materials and radio advertisements and/or features.

Departmental Expenditure

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the cost of refurbishing each ministerial private office was in the last two years.

Alun Michael: In 2002–03 the four upper floors of 9 Millbank were refurbished at a total cost of £2.5 million. This project included three private offices for ministerial support staff.
	No expenditure for refurbishing ministerial private offices was incurred in 2003–04.

Departmental Mail

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  how many letters were returned to her Department marked as incorrectly addressed in each of the last 12 months;
	(2)  if she will place the recent departmental circular on the correct addressing of envelopes in the Library;
	(3)  how many recipients received her Department's circular on how to address envelopes; and what its circulation cost.

Alun Michael: Many items of correspondence are returned to Defra, often because of incorrect or poor addressing by the senders in the first place. We endeavour to keep returned mail to a minimum. That is why an internal memo was issued recently to all Defra staff drawing attention to the need to address envelopes correctly. All Defra staff would have seen the memo in our weekly Office Notice. Drafting and circulating the memo took a couple of minutes and involved significantly less time than answering the hon. Gentleman's questions. Records of incorrectly addressed envelopes are not maintained because of disproportionate costs. As the memo was intended for internal use, there is no reason to place a copy in the House Library, but the text of the note was as follows:
	Addressing of envelopes
	Many letters or correspondence are being returned to the Communication Room (Post Room) as undelivered by the Royal Mail, this is not only time-consuming but also costly to both Defra and Royal Mail. The reason for these letters not to be delivered is as a result of incorrect or poor addressing of envelopes by the senders.
	In order for us as a Department to keep to the spirit of sustainability and reducing waste, Corporate Support Branch (CSB) has therefore, decided to issue the following tip on addressing envelopes correctly:
	When addressing outgoing mail, ensure that the address is typed or handwritten legibly. The address should ideally be kept parallel to the longest side of the envelope. The address must fall within the address clear zone. There must be a clear zone all around the address of 5mm. This must not encroach on other clear zones. There must be a clear zone of 5mm around the address block, including any customer barcode. The area around the address block must be kept clear of graphics, printing and variations in background to enable the Optical Character Reading (OCR) equipment to locate the address and obtain a clean address image.
	Window Envelopes
	There is no maximum or minimum size for a window. However the window size is constrained by the length of the address, font size, number of lines of the address, address boundaries and clear zones. In order to read and interpret the address, the automation equipment locates the position of the window and takes an image of the address. The complete address must be clearly visible through the window with a 5mm clear zone around it.
	The message then refers the reader to advice in more detail on the Defra intranet.

Departmental Management Board

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what role is played by the two non-executive directors on her Department's management board; and what remuneration each receives.

Alun Michael: The role of non-executives is to use their experience outside Government to bring an independent perspective and constructive challenge to all of the board's business, in particular to the areas of change management, performance management, and risk.
	One of the non-executives is also chair of our Audit and Risk Committee. Other duties carried out by them include: co-chairing a performance management committee that analyses the Department's balanced scorecard, membership of the Ministerial Challenge Panel on regulation, and assisting the Senior Appointments Board in certain recruitment exercises and remuneration issues.
	Their remuneration is £10,000 per annum (plus reasonable expenses).

E-mail

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to introduce an automatic e-mail notification facility for announcements and publications issued by her Department and those public bodies reporting to her.

Alun Michael: Defra has no specific plans at the moment to introduce an automatic e-mail notification service. We are currently working with our recently-appointed strategic IT supplier to review the ways that we supply information electronically to Defra's customers and to the public, and consideration will be given to the introduction of such a service as part of the review.

Emissions Trading

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what studies the Government has made of (a) sulphur dioxide and (b) nitrous oxide trading in the United States; and what conclusions it has drawn.

Elliot Morley: While the Government has not undertaken any specific studies on the US trading systems for SO 2 and NOx, the US experience in this area has informed the development of trading schemes to address emissions of greenhouse gases, in particular the UK Emissions Trading Scheme and the implementation of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme. It has also informed work on implementation of the revised Large Combustion Plants Directive and has prompted the Government's call for the integrated pollution prevention and control Directive to be further amended so as to facilitate greater potential for emissions trading.

Farmers

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many dairy farmers there were in the UK in each of the last five years.

Alun Michael: The following figures show the number of principal farmers, partners, directors and their spouses (if working on the holding) in England on holdings where dairy is the predominant activity. Figures for the other UK countries fall under the jurisdiction of the devolved authorities.
	
		
			  Number of farmers, partners, directors and spouses  Number of holdings 
		
		
			 Main holdings only   
			 1999 33,216 15,623 
			
			 Main and minor holdings 
			 2000 31,418 14,841 
			 2001 29,732 14,053 
			 2002 30,014 14,231 
			 2003 28,438 13,235 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. A register improvement exercise increased the number of holdings in 2001. The 2000 figures for main and minor holdings are therefore not comparable with the later figures.
	2. From 2000 we have maintained a combined database of all holdings .Prior to that, the census database was of main holdings only. A separate database was held of minor holdings but these were only surveyed once every five years or so.
	Source:
	June Agricultural Census

Farmers

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many farmers there were in the UK in each of the last five years.

Alun Michael: The following figures show the number of principal farmers, partners, directors and their spouses (if working on the holding) in England and the number of holdings they are working on. Figures for the other UK countries fall under the jurisdiction of the devolved authorities.
	
		
			  Number of farmers, partners, directors and spouses  Number of holdings 
		
		
			 Main holdings only   
			 1999 203,362 118,063 
			
			 Main and minor holdings 
			 2000 220,931 133,246 
			 2001 233,828 138,287 
			 2002 225,520 139,811 
			 2003 219,123 136,193 
		
	
	Note:
	A register improvement exercise increased the registered holdings in 2001. The 2000 figures for main and minor holdings are therefore not comparable with the later figures.
	Source:
	June Agricultural Census

Human Rights Act

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many cases have been brought against her Department under the Human Rights Act 1998; and what the cost has been in (a) legal fees to defend cases and (b) compensation payments.

Alun Michael: The whole point of the incorporation of the European Charter on Human Rights into domestic law was to allow human rights considerations to be considered fully at every level of the legal system as a matter of course rather than having to be considered separately and laboriously as a single issue. Not surprisingly, the great majority of cases brought against the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs involve human rights only when they are brought in support of other litigation—as a 'backstop' claim.
	As a result this makes any human rights elements to a case very hard to count separately. The subjects of the convention rights themselves are, to a very great extent, already actionable in existing domestic law.
	For these reasons it would not be possible to apportion costs and compensation payments as requested without reviewing every single case handled by this Department since October 2000, which would give rise to disproportionate cost.

Pigs/Pigmeat Sales

Richard Bacon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what proportion of (a) pork, (b) bacon and (c) ham sold in UK supermarkets is (i) British produced and (ii) bears the Meat and Livestock Commission's Quality Standard Mark.

Alun Michael: Proportions are set out in the following table:
	
		Percentage
		
			  (a) Pork (b) Bacon (c) Ham 
		
		
			 (i) British produced 83 41 41 
			 (ii)Bears Quality Standard Mark 62 16 14 
		
	
	However, in addition to the above figures several large supermarkets 1 currently supply 100 per cent. British fresh pork, but do not carry the Quality Standard Mark. The British Pig Executive (BPEX) is working closely with them to encourage the use of the QSM on their packaging.
	1 Waitrose, Marks and Spencer and Budgens supply 100 per cent. British fresh pork, and Morrisons supply predominantly British fresh pork.

Pigs/Pigmeat Sales

Richard Bacon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the size of the UK pig herd was in (a) 1994, (b) 1999 and (c) 2004.

Alun Michael: The following figures show the size of the pig herd in England. Figures for the other UK countries fall under the jurisdiction of the devolved authorities. Numbers for 2004 are currently provisional, final figures are due to be published on 16 December 2004.
	
		
			  Total pigs 
		
		
			 (a) 1994 6,591,684 
			 (b) 1999 6,163,443 
			 (c) 2004 4,089,352 
		
	
	Source:
	June Agricultural Census

Pigs/Pigmeat Sales

Richard Bacon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations her Department has received regarding the impact of pork imports on domestic pig production.

Alun Michael: We are aware of the British Pig Industry's concerns surrounding the impact of pork imports, not least following the recent British Pig Executive (BPEX) report. This report sought to illustrate the additional cost and detrimental market effects on UK pig producers in achieving high welfare standards.

Public Bodies

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the membership is of the (a) Expert Panel on Air Quality Standards, (b) Zoos Forum, (c) Advisory Committee on Pesticides and (d) Farm Animal Welfare Council; what the (i) cost of salaries and expenses to members and (ii) running costs of each body were in the last year for which figures are available; and how many staff are employed to service each body.

Alun Michael: The membership of each of these bodies and the figures that are available are listed, subject to the qualifications.
	(i) Membership is accurate as at 31 March 2004
	(ii) The total cost of salaries and expenses paid to members and the running costs for each committee are included with Defra's accounts but are not separately identifiable. I have included the remuneration levels, as at 31 March 2004 and the total sponsorship cost to the department (which would include remuneration and expenses of members, administrative costs, research funding and any other cost to the department directly related to the sponsorship of the body) for the last financial year.
	(iii) Departmental staff service these bodies alongside a range of other duties but it is not possible to identify their numbers separately.
	Expert Panel on Air Quality Standards
	Prof. Stephen Holgate (Chair)
	Prof. Jon Ayres
	Prof. Peter Blain
	Dr. Peter Baxter
	Dr. Paul Cullinan
	Mrs. Ann Davison
	Prof. Richard Derwent QBE
	Dr. Jonathon Grigg
	Prof. Roy Harrison QBE
	Prof. Francis J. Kelly
	Dr. Geoffrey Pigott
	Dr. Alison Searl
	Mr. John Stedman
	The Chair receives £193.64 per day, members receive £149.35 per day
	Defra expenditure on remuneration—£17,000
	Zoos Forum
	Mr. Nick Jackson MBE (acting chair)
	Mrs. Suzanne Boardman
	Dr. Sue Dale-Tunnicliffe
	Mr. Alastair Grant
	Mr. Andrew Greenwood
	Dr. Heather Hall
	Mr. Raymond Ings
	Dr. James Kirkwood
	Mr. Stewart Muir
	Dr. Miranda Stevenson
	Ms Mary Talbot-Rosevear
	Mr. Tim Thomas MBE
	Mr. Peter Wearden
	Chair and board members are unpaid
	Defra expenditure on sponsorship—£15,240.68
	Advisory Committee on Pesticides
	Prof. David N M Coggon (Chair)
	Dr. David Nicholas Bateman
	Dr. John Cherrie
	Mr. James Clarke
	Dr. Richard Charles Clutterbuck
	Prof. Gareth Edwards-Jones
	Dr. Clifford Elcombe
	Dr.Ian Grieve
	Mr. Vyvyan Howard
	Ms Rosaline Howell
	Prof. David W. Macdonald
	Dr. Lorraine Maltby
	Prof. Graham Anthony Matthews
	Ms Diane McCrea
	Dr. Patricia Rose McElhatton
	Dr. Daniel Osborn
	Prof. Robert Henry Smith
	Mr. Christopher Stopes
	Dr. Vinod Tohani
	Dr. Rosemary Waring
	Chair receives £199 per meeting, the members receive £156 per meeting
	Defra expenditure on sponsorship—£104,000
	Farm Animal Welfare Council
	Dr. Judy Macarthur Clark CBE (Chair)
	Mr. Ian Douglas Baker
	Mrs. Rosemary Berry
	Mr. John Alexander Campbell Don
	Prof. Peter Roderick English
	Mr. Graham Godbold
	Mr. Edmund Charles Michael Harper
	Mr. David C Henderson
	Mr. James William Hook
	Prof. Alistair Burnett Lawrence
	Mrs. Ruth Layton
	Mr. Stephen Andrew Lister
	Mr. Gareth Jones Lloyd
	Mr. Richard Maunder
	Prof. John Peter Mcinerney
	Prof. David Morton
	Miss Miriam Jane Parker
	Dr. Martin James Potter
	Rev. Prof. Michael Reiss
	Mrs. Barbara Smith
	Mr. Selwyn Michael Vaughan
	Mrs. Meryl Ward
	Chair receives £199 per day, members receive £125 per day
	Defra expenditure on sponsorship—£412,654

Public Bodies

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the membership is of the (a) Government-Industry Forum on non-Food Uses of Crop, (b) Hill Farming Advisory Committee for England, Wales and Northern I reland, (c) Independent Advisory Group on Cattle TB, (d) Inland Waterways Amenity Advisory Council, (e) Pesticides Residue Committee, (f) Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee, (g) Sustainable Development Education Panel, (h) Veterinary Products Committee, (i) Veterinary Residues Committee and (j) Water Regulations Advisory Committee; what the (i) cost of salaries and expenses to members and (ii) running cost of each body was in the last year for which figures are available; and how many staff are employed to service each body.

Alun Michael: The membership of each of these bodies and the figures that are available are listed, subject to the qualifications.
	(i) Membership is accurate as at 31 March 2004
	(ii) The total cost of salaries and expenses paid to members and the running costs for each committee are included with Defra's accounts but are not separately identifiable. I have included the remuneration levels, as at 31 March 2004 and the total sponsorship cost to the department (which would include remuneration and expenses of members, administrative costs, research funding and any other cost to the department directly related to the sponsorship of the body) for the last financial year.
	(iii) Departmental staff service these bodies alongside a range of other duties but it is not possible to identify their numbers separately.
	The Government-Industry Forum on non-Food Uses of Crops the Sustainable Development Education Panel and the Water Regulations Advisory Committee have been wound up and the Hill Farming Advisory Committee and the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee are both currently in abeyance.
	Independent Scientific Group on TB in Cattle
	Mr. John Bourne (Chair)
	Prof. Christl Donnelly
	Sir David Cox
	Prof. George Gettinby
	Prof. John Peter Mcinerney
	Prof. Ivan Morrison
	Dr. Rosemary Woodroffe
	Chair receives £185 per day, members receive £153 per day
	Defra expenditure on sponsorship—£200,000
	Inland Waterways Amenity Advisory Committee
	Lady Sheelin Virginia Knollys (Chair)
	Cllr. Stewart Stacey
	Ms Jane Barron
	Cllr. Michael John Bruton
	Mr. David Brian Dare
	Mrs. Carol Davenport
	Mrs. Helen Green
	Mr. Tony Hirst QBE
	Dr. Christine Johnstone
	Mr. Wyndham Mitchell
	Mr. David Morgan
	Mr. Mike Palmer
	Dr. David Pattison
	Mr. John Richard Pomfret
	Mrs. Audrey Smith
	Dr. Nigel John Willby
	Mrs. Fiona Willis
	The chair receives £197.25 per day, the members are unpaid
	Defra expenditure on sponsorship—£50,000
	Pesticide Residues Committee
	Dr. Ian Brown (Chair)
	Mr. Ian Finlayson
	Ms Morven Mceachern
	Ms Hazel Philips
	Prof. Andrew Gordon Renwick
	Mr. Graham Philip Ward
	Ms Maura Wilson
	The chair receives £159 per day, the members receive £125 per day
	Defra expenditure on sponsorship—£65,000
	Veterinary Products Committee
	Mr. David Skilton (Chair)
	Dr. Alistair Boxall
	Prof. Tar-Ching Aw
	Dr. Andrew John Bradley
	Dr. Paul George Brantom
	Dr. Sarah Margaret Elizabeth Cockbill
	Mrs Rosemary Vivien Collingborn
	Prof. Barry Cookson
	Dr. Susan Dawson
	Prof. Michael Joseph Day
	Dr. Jonathan Elliott
	Dr. John Gilleard
	Mrs. Sheila Jessie Graham
	Dr. Peter Greaves
	Dr. Raymond John Heitzman
	Dr. Leigh Marian Henderson
	Dr. Leonard Stephen Levy
	Mr. Stephen Andrew Lister
	Dr. William John Mccaughey
	Mr. Frederick McKeating
	Prof. Andrea Mary Nolan
	Prof. Stuart Reid
	Prof. Bertus Karel Rima
	Prof. Howard Norman Ernest Stevens
	Dr. John Paul Thompson
	Mr. John Harold Verrall
	Mr. Anthony Edward Wall
	Dr. Jason Weeks
	The chair receives £245 per meeting, members receive £194 per meeting
	The running costs are met by the industry and not Defra
	Veterinary Residues Committee
	(Chair vacant)
	Mrs. Dorothy Ann Craig
	Mr. John Ambrose
	Prof. Keith G. Anderson
	Prof. Alan Boobis
	Dr. Paul George Brantom
	Mr. Neil Richard Cutler
	Prof. Julie L. Fitzpatrick
	Dr. Keith Lawrence
	Dr. William John Mccaughey
	Mrs. Freida Stack
	Dr. Brian Geoffrey Vernon
	The chair receives £193 per meeting, members receive £151 per meeting
	Defra expenditure on sponsorship—£51,300

Public Bodies

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the membership is of the (a) Air Quality Expert Group, (b) Apple and Pear Research Council, (c) Committee of Investigation for Great Britain, (d) Committee on Agricultural Valuation, (e) Committee on Products and Processes for Use in Public Water Supply, (f) Consumers' Committee for Great Britain under the Agriculture Marketing Act 1958, (g) Darwin Advisory Committee and (h) Expert Group on Cryptosporidium in Water Supply; what the (i) cost of salaries and expenses to members and (ii) running costs of each body was in the last year for which figures are available; and how many staff are employed to service each body.

Alun Michael: The membership of each of these bodies and the figures that are available are listed, subject to the qualifications as follows.
	(i) Membership is accurate as at 31 March 2004
	(ii) The total cost of salaries and expenses paid to members and the running costs for each committee are included with Defra's accounts but are not separately identifiable. I have included the remuneration levels, as at 31 March 2004 and the total sponsorship cost to the Department (which would include remuneration and expenses of members, administrative costs, research funding and any other cost to the Department directly related to the sponsorship of the body) for the last financial year.
	(iii) Departmental staff service these bodies alongside a range of other duties but it is not possible to identify their numbers separately.
	The Apple and Pear Research Council is no longer in existence and the Committee of Investigation for Great Britain, the Committee on Agricultural Valuation and the Consumers Committee for Great Britain are all currently inactive.
	Air Quality Expert Group
	Professor Mike J Pilling (chair)
	Professor Helen Apsimon
	Dr .David J Carruthers
	Mr. David C Carslaw
	Dr. Roy N Colville
	Professor Richard Derwent OBE
	Mr. Stephen R Dorling
	Professor Bernard Fisher
	Professor Roy Harrison OBE
	Dr. Mathew R Heal
	Professor Duncan P H Laxen
	Dr. Sarah J Lindley
	Dr. lan S Mccrae
	Mr. John Stedman
	The chair receives £193.64 per day (up to a maximum of 40 days per year) and members receive £149.35 (up to a maximum of 20 days per year)
	Defra expenditure on sponsorship—£74,000
	Committee on products and processes for use in public water supply
	Mr. Owen Hydes OBE (chair)
	Mr. Stephen Robjohns
	Mr. Anthony Lloyd
	Mrs. Joy Fraser
	Dr. John B Greig
	Professor Roger F Stokes
	Mr. Geoff R Tute
	Mr. Robin M Walls
	The chair receives £230 per day, members receive £196.
	Defra expenditure on sponsorship—£107,500
	Darwin Advisory Committee
	Professor David Ingram (chair)
	Dr. Mark Collins
	Professor Dianne Edwards
	Professor David Goode
	Professor David McDonald
	Dr. Eimear Nic Lughada
	Dr. Melanie O'neill
	Professor Philip Rainbow
	Professor, lan Swingland
	Miss Kerry ten Kate
	The chair and members are unpaid
	Defra expenditure on sponsorship—£3,712
	Expert group on cryptosporidium in water supply
	Professor lan Bouchier (chair)
	Dr. C Benton
	Dr. R Chalmers
	Mr. D Clapham
	Professor M Farthing
	Mr. T Hall
	Professor P Hunter
	Dr. R Joce
	Dr .C Ramsay
	Mr. R Robinson
	Professor H Smith
	Dr. J Stuart
	The chair and members are unpaid
	The group has recently gone through a period on inactivity and therefore there are no figures on expenditure on sponsorship.

Regional Climate Change Partnerships

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the estimated public expenditure on the regional climate change partnerships in England was in the latest year for which figures are available.

Elliot Morley: The regional climate change partnerships are stakeholder-led groups which determine their own work programmes on the impacts of climate change and adaptation. The Department funds the UK Climate Impacts Programme (UKCIP) to help UK organisations assess and prepare for the impacts of climate change. UKCIP works with the regional climate change partnerships, but the partnerships do not receive direct funding from this source. However, many other national, regional and local level public sector organisations are represented in the partnerships, providing varying amounts of both financial and in-kind resource. Private sector organisations are also represented.
	It was developed following independent research, which revealed that the rules relating to personal imports of food were relevant to black and minority ethnic communities within the UK, but that awareness of the legislation within these communities was not wide spread. The communications activity is intended to reach and engage with black and minority ethnic communities through communications and media channels relevant to them.
	Press advertising is only one communications option which the Department considers when planning a public awareness campaign and is evaluated alongside other paid and non-paid communications activity which may involve outreach work, distribution of bi-lingual printed materials and radio advertisements and/or features.

Sellafield (Flooding)

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what evaluation she has made of the threat of flooding to Sellafield from the River Calder; and what assessment she has made of the relevant flood maps produced by the Environment Agency.

Elliot Morley: I understand the Environment Agency has carried out a thorough evaluation of the threat of flooding to Sellafield from the River Calder using their most accurate modelling techniques. More detailed site specific modelling work has now been made available which takes account of the heavily engineered channel that improves conveyance to the River Calder running through the site.
	This evaluation will be used to update the flood map on 10 January 2005. The new outline will show the area of site predicted to be at flood risk to be significantly reduced and limited to a 0.1 per cent. risk of a flood occurring in any one year.

Timber

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans her Department has to fund the establishment and maintenance of the Central Point of Expertise on Timber.

Alun Michael: The UK central Government Departments and devolved Administrations have agreed that Defra should proceed to invite tenders for a service provider to set up and operate a central point of expertise on timber (CPET) help line. This will be Phase 2 of CPET and we plan to invite tenders in the spring of 2005.
	Defra has already commissioned consultants ProForest to operate a pilot help line. This is planned to finish by the end of March 2005 and will help Defra to draw up the contract terms and conditions for the full help line service.
	Bidders for the CPET help line will be invited to offer proposals that will include income generation through fees and charges. It remains to be seen whether and to what extent income generation is a viable proposition but the Government have earmarked funds to underwrite the service for its first three years.

Timber

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what projects local authorities are undertaking to reuse household wood.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 1 December 2004
	The Department does not hold information on all the projects local authorities are undertaking to recycle waste products such as household wood. However the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) "RecycleWood" programme does hold a map of self-nominated organisations that offer services and facilities for collecting and processing wood waste and this is available through WRAP'S website, http://www.wrap.org.uk/.

Waste

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairswhat measures she is taking to ensure that the polluter pays principle applies to the collection and management of municipal waste; which 10 local authorities have the (a) highest and (b) lowest recycling rates; and which political parties control each of these authorities.

Elliot Morley: Government applies the polluter pays principle to the collection and management of municipal waste by enabling local authorities to charge for the collection of commercial and industrial waste and bulky or heavy items of household waste. Landfill tax is payable on all municipal waste landfilled.
	The 10 local authorities with the highest and lowest recycling and composting rates in England are given in the following table, with percentages achieved for 2002–03, which are the most recent audited data available. The table also shows the current political control in these local authorities.
	
		
			  Local authority Percentage of household waste recycled and composted in 2002–03(1)  Political Party in Control(2) 
		
		
			 Daventry district council 44 Conservative 
			 Lichfield district council 43 Conservative 
			 Wyre borough council 33 Conservative 
			 Melton district council 31 Conservative 
			 Isle of Wight district council 31 No overall control 
			 St. Edmundsbury district council 30 Conservative 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead borough council 29 Liberal Democrats 
			 Forest Heath district council 28 Conservative 
			 Eastleigh borough council 28 Liberal Democrats 
			 Chiltern district council (joint 10th place) 27 Conservative 
			 Dorset county council (joint 10th place) 27 Conservative 
			 Kettering district council 4 Conservative 
			 North Tyneside council 4 Conservative 
			 Rochdale Metropolitan borough council 4 No overall control 
			 Corby district council 4 Labour 
			 Tower Hamlets London borough 3 Labour 
			 Bolsover district council 3 Labour 
			 Hackney London borough 3 Labour 
			 Sunderland city council 2 Labour 
			 Barking and Dagenham London borough 2 Labour 
			 Liverpool Metropolitan borough council 2 Liberal Democrats 
		
	
	(1) These data are published by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and are available at www.bvpi.gov.uk. The level of household waste recycling and composting in local authorities is the sum of Best Value Performance Indicator 82a and 82b (percentage of household waste sent for recycling and composting respectively).
	(2) Information on party political control has been obtained from councils' websites or by direct contact with the authority.

Water Rates

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the tax component of the recent increase in water rates is.

Elliot Morley: Changes to Corporation Tax on water companies from 1 April 2004 will contribute about £5 to the increase in the average household water and sewerage bill in England and Wales for the period 1 April 2005 to 31 March 2010. The effect on each company, which depends on its tax position, is set out in 'Future water and sewerage charges 2005–10: final determinations', published by Ofwat on 2 December 2004, which is in the Library of the House.

CABINET OFFICE

Official Residences

George Osborne: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the cost was of running each official residence for which her Department is responsible in the last year for which figures are available.

Ruth Kelly: I refer the hon. Member to the answer that I gave to the hon. Member for Hertford and Stortford, (Mr. Prisk), 1 November 2004, Official Report, column 129W.

Official Residences

George Osborne: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  what the cost of receptions and parties hosted by Ministers in her Department in their official residences has been since 1997;
	(2)  if she will list overnight guests to official residences in her Department since 1997.

Ruth Kelly: Ministers in the Cabinet Office do not have an official residence.

Projected Operation Budgets

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the projected (a) resource budget, (b) staff numbers and (c) running costs are of (i) the Regulatory Impact Unit and (ii) the Better Regulation Task Force for 2004–07.

Ruth Kelly: The Regulatory Impact Unit budget (resource and running costs) for 2004–05 is £3.5 million and of this, £550,000 is for the Better Regulation Task Force.
	As at the 1 April 2004, 62 staff were working in the Regulatory Impact Unit and of these, nine worked in the Better Regulation Task Force Secretariat.
	The projected budget and staff numbers for 2005–06 to 2007–08 will be finalised following completion of the Cabinet Office's business planning round in 2005.

Public Engagements

Julian Lewis: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, pursuant to his answer of 2 December 2004, Official Report, column 252W, on public engagements, whether he fulfilled public engagements in (a) September and (b) October.

Alan Milburn: No. I refer the hon. Member to the answer I previously gave him on the 2 December 2004, Official Report, column 252W.

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether Cabinet Office special advisers have written to external (a) bodies and (b) individuals in their official capacity since May 1997.

Ruth Kelly: Special Advisers contacts with external bodies and organisations are undertaken in accordance with the requirements of the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers.

PRIME MINISTER

Butler Report

Mark Prisk: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  what action has been taken to address the recommendation in paragraph 585 of Lord Butler's Review of Intelligence on Weapons of Mass Destruction concerning the use of new information systems to bring together sources of expertise in Government on proliferation; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what action has been taken to address the recommendation in paragraph 604 of Lord Butler's Review of Intelligence on Weapons of Mass Destruction that the intelligence community review their conventions; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what action has been taken to address the recommendation in paragraph 600 of Lord Butler's Review of Intelligence on Weapons of Mass Destruction concerning the size, resources and career structure of the Assessments Staff; and if he will make a statement.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement made by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on 15 November 2004, Official Report, column 54WS.

Butler Review

Tim Boswell: To ask the Prime Minister what action has been taken to address the concerns expressed in paragraph 611 of Lord Butler's Review of Intelligence on Weapons of Mass Destruction, concerning Government procedures; and if he will make a statement.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Member to my statement of 20 July 2004, Official Report, column 195–207.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Capital Expenditure

Jeffrey M Donaldson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what capital expenditure has been at the Lagan Valley hospital in each year since 1997.

Angela Smith: The information in respect of capital expenditure at the Lagan Valley hospital in each year since 1997, is detailed in the following table:
	
		Capital expenditure at the Lagan Valley hospital from 1997–98 to 2003–04
		
			 Year to 31 March £ 
		
		
			 1998 720,460 
			 1999 231,024 
			 2000 1,664,933 
			 2001 1,391,000 
			 2002 1,223,076 
			 2003 636,670 
			 2004 2,551,000

Capital Formula Review

Roy Beggs: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether it is his policy that the Capital Formula Review should redistribute resources in line with population changes; and when the new formula will be applied.

Angela Smith: The capitation formula has always taken account of population changes. The impact of such changes has to be considered alongside the changes in the other factors in the formula in determining the speed of implementation of shifts in the resource allocation pattern. The public consultation period for the new formula finished on 30 November 2004. My officials are currently considering the responses, and I intend to make a decision on the implementation of a revised formula in the New Year.

Departmental Files

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many departmental files have been destroyed in each of the past five years.

Angela Smith: The Northern Ireland Departments have not compiled statistics of files destroyed and such figures would be available only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Files

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what changes have been promulgated in each of the past five years to the guidelines or other criteria for the retention or destruction of departmental files.

Angela Smith: Following consultation with Northern Ireland Departments, the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland issued the Northern Ireland Records Management Standard (NIRMS) in 2002 as records management guidance for those Departments. It was augmented in 2003 with 'Guidelines on Information Audits and Disposal Schedules'. The guidance supports the carrying out of Departmental and PRONI responsibilities under the Public Records Act (NI) 1923.
	As a Whitehall Department coming under the Public Records Act 1958, the Northern Ireland Office receives its formal records management advice from The National Archives (formerly the Public Record Office). The National Archives is developing on an on-going basis a range of guidance for Whitehall Departments. Therefore the NIRMS guidance does not apply to that Department.

Halloween

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many fire-related (a) injuries, (b) accident and emergency attendances, (c) ambulance calls, (d) fire service call-outs and (e) police calls were reported over the Halloween period in the Province in each of the last 10 years.

Angela Smith: The number of fire-related injuries, ambulance calls and fire service call-outs that were reported over the Halloween period in Northern Ireland in each of the last 10 years is detailed in the following table. Information about accident and emergency attendances by reason is not collected centrally and the number of police calls could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  (a) Injuries (b) Accident and emergency attendances (c) Ambulance calls (d) Fire service call-outs (e) Police calls 
		
		
			 2004 n/a n/a 29 3161 n/a 
			 2003 16 n/a 41 3582 n/a 
			 2002 21 n/a 41 2940 n/a 
			 2001 15 n/a 59 3697 n/a 
			 2000 11 n/a 57 2807 n/a 
			 1999 15 n/a 49 2944 n/a 
			 1998 24 n/a 68 n/a n/a 
			 1997 13 n/a 42 n/a n/a 
			 1996 11 n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 1995 14 n/a n/a n/a n/a 
		
	
	n/a=not available
	Source:
	(a) Hospital Inpatient System; (c) Northern Ireland Ambulance Service; (d) Fire Authority for Northern Ireland.
	The Halloween period has been taken to be 11 October to 8 November in each year.
	Information for (a) relating to 2004 is not available.
	Information for (c) relating to 1995 and 1996 is not available due to changes in information technology systems.
	Information for (d) 1995–98 is not readily available.

Legislation

Brian White: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what pieces of legislation passed in the last 30 years that the Department is responsible for remain to be brought into force, broken down by year of enactment.

Paul Murphy: pursuant to his reply on 1 December 2004 (Official Report, c. 138W
	The information provided contained some factual inaccuracies. The correct answer is as follows:
	The following list sets out a broad overview of Acts of Parliament from 1997 for which the Northern Ireland Office is responsible and parts of which remain to be brought into force. The following list does not include provisions which have never been in force and are now repealed or spent.
	The Northern Ireland Act 1998
	All in force, apart from
	Schedule 13 paras
	1—Minor and Consequential Amendments —Repealed (never in force)
	10—Minor and Consequential Amendments—Repealed (never in force).
	Sch. 13 paras
	16—Repealed
	18—Repealed
	Sch. 15—Repeals—Not in force, apart from in cases of exception mentioned in the schedule.
	Justice (NI) Act 2002
	Part 1
	S1—Guarantee of continued judicial independence—not yet commenced.
	S2—Introductory—not yet commenced
	S3—Judicial Appointments Commission—not yet commenced
	S4—Appointment to most senior judicial offices—not yet commenced
	S5—Appointment to listed judicial offices—not yet commenced
	S6—Removal from most senior judicial offices—not yet commenced
	S7—Removal from listed judicial offices—not yet commenced
	S8—Tribunals for considering removals—not yet commenced.
	S9(12)—Lay magistrates—not yet commenced
	S10—Transfer of functions of justices of the peace—not yet commenced
	S11—Transfer of functions of lay panellists—not yet commenced
	S12—Role of LCJ—not yet commenced
	S13—Presiding county court judge—not yet commenced.
	S14—Presiding resident magistrate—not yet commenced
	S15—Presiding lay magistrate—not yet commenced
	S16—Complaints about holders of judicial office—not yet commenced
	S20—Crown Solicitor—not yet commenced
	Part II
	S22—Attorney General—not yet commenced
	S23—Terms of appointment of Attorney General—not yet commenced
	S24—Removal of Attorney General—not yet commenced
	S25—Participation of Attorney General in Assembly proceedings—not yet commenced
	S26—Annual Report by Attorney General—not yet commenced
	S27—Advocate General—not yet commenced
	S28—Functions of Advocate General—not yet commenced
	S29—Public Prosecution Service—not yet commenced
	S30—Director of Public Prosecutions—not yet commenced
	S31—Conduct of prosecutions—not yet commenced
	S32—Discontinuance of proceedings before a court appearance—not yet commenced
	S33—Consents to prosecutions—not yet commenced
	S34—Police Complaints—not yet commenced
	S35—Information for Director—not yet commenced
	S36—Exercise of functions by and on behalf of Service—not yet commenced
	S37—Code for Prosecutors—not yet commenced
	S38—Equality and non-discrimination—not yet commenced
	S39—Reports by Director—not yet commenced
	S40—Superintendence and removal of director—not yet commenced
	S41—Transfer of functions etc—not yet commenced
	S42—Independence of Director—not yet commenced
	S43—Appointment and removal of Director by Attorney General—not yet commenced
	S44—Interpretation—not yet commenced
	Part III
	S50—Law Commission—not yet commenced
	S51—Duties of Commission—not yet commenced
	S52—Reports etc.—not yet commenced
	Part IV
	S53(6)—Aims of youth justice system—not yet commenced
	S56—Custody care orders—not yet commenced
	S63—Extension of youth justice system to 17 year olds—not yet commenced
	S64—Juvenile justice centre order for 17 year olds—not yet commenced
	S65—Consultation about detention—not yet commenced
	Part V
	S67—Flying of flags at court houses—not yet commenced
	S72—Local community safety partnerships—not yet commenced
	S73—Constitutional of rules committees—not yet commenced
	S76—Exceptional legal aid—not yet commenced
	S78—Power to abolish court service—not yet commenced
	Part VI
	S82—Excepted matters: new institutions—not yet commenced
	S83—Reserved matters: new institutions—not yet commenced
	S84—Assembly Acts about judiciary, law officers and prosecutions—not yet commenced
	S85—Minor and consequential amendments—not yet commenced
	S86—Repeals and revocations—not yet commenced
	Schedules
	S1—Listed judicial offices—not yet commenced
	S2—Judicial Appointments Commission—not yet commenced
	S3—Appointment to listed judicial offices—not yet commenced
	S4—Functions of justices of the peace—not yet commenced
	S5—Transfer of functions to LCJ—not yet commenced
	S7—Functions of Advocate General—not yet commenced
	S9—Law Commission—not yet commenced
	S11—Extension of youth justice system to 17 year olds—not yet commenced
	S12—Minor and consequential amendments—not yet commenced
	S13—Repeals and revocations—not yet commenced
	The Police (NI) Act 2003
	District Policing Partnerships
	Section 15 (1)—(5)—Independent members: declaration against terrorism—not in force.
	Section 16 (1)—Independent members: disqualification— not in force
	Section 19 (1)—Facilities establishment of Belfast district policing partnership's sub-groups and deals with their composition and functions.
	Police functions and Service
	Section 26 (1)—(3)—Protected disclosures by police officers—not in force.
	Searches and Samples
	Section 41 (1)—Intimate searches—not in force.
	Section 42 (2)—(5) Intimate samples—not in force.
	Schedule 1—Belfast—not in force
	Schedule 4—repeals and revocations—not in force apart from exceptions
	Justice (NI) Act 2004–12–14
	S1—Transfer to LC of functions relating to JAC—not yet commenced
	S2—Membership of the Commission—not yet commenced
	S3—Duty of Commission to secure judiciary reflective of the community—not yet commenced
	S4—Appointment of LCJ and LJs of appeal—not yet commenced
	S5—Removal or suspension from listed judicial offices—not yet commenced
	S6—Duty of the DPP to refer certain matters to police ombudsman—not yet commenced
	S7—Influencing a prosecutor—not yet commenced
	S8—Guidance for CJ organisations on human rights standards—not yet commenced
	S16—Court security—not yet commenced
	S1—Transfer to LC of functions relating to NI JAC—not yet commenced
	S3—Court security—not yet commenced
	S4—(partially)—Repeals—not yet commenced

Royal Irish Regiment

Mr. Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the average weekly working hours for the junior ranks of the full-time Home Service Royal Irish Regiment were between October 2003 and October 2004.

Adam Ingram: I have been asked to reply.
	While some information on working patterns for full-time members of the Home Service Battalions of the Royal Irish Regiment is held by individual battalions, the information is not held in the format requested.

Stair Lifts

Roy Beggs: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many patients who have been listed as high priority are on the waiting list for a stair lift, broken down by health trust area.

Angela Smith: The information requested is as follows.
	
		
			 Health and social services trust Number of high priority patients waiting for a stair lift 
		
		
			 Armagh and Dungannon 3 
			 Causeway 0 
			 Craigavon and Banbridge Community 0 
			 Down Lisburn 0 
			 Foyle 30 
			 Greenpark No remit 
			 Homefirst 33 
			 Newry and Mourne 3 
			 North and West Belfast 0 
			 South and East Belfast 0 
			 Sperrin Lakeland 11 
			 Ulster Community and hospitals 0

TRANSPORT

A1 Improvements

Peter Atkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the revised start dates are of construction of (a) the A1 Dishforth to Barton upgrade and (b) the Haydon Bridge bypass.

David Jamieson: The information is as follows.
	Al Dishforth to Barton upgrade
	This scheme is included in a list of 33 schemes announced by the Highways Agency on 1 December 2004 that are planned to start construction by April 2008.
	A69 Haydon Bridge bypass
	The A69 Haydon Bridge bypass and 13 other schemes are identified as being on routes of predominantly regional rather than national importance. Ministers wish to engage with regional and local stakeholders in identifying priorities for these schemes within overall transport investment. Subject to regional priorities and funding, these schemes should be considered for a start of works from 2008 onwards.

A14

James Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  when he plans to launch the public consultation on plans to widen the A14 between Cambridge and Huntingdon;
	(2)  for what reasons the public consultation on plans to widen the A14 between Cambridge and Huntingdon has been delayed.

David Jamieson: Public consultation on proposals for the A14 Ellington to Fen Ditton improvement is now expected to start in spring 2005.
	The public consultation has been put back to allow more time for the Highways Agency to consider an alternative proposal to the scheme recommended by the Cambridge to Huntingdon Multi Modal Study (CHUMMS). The alternative has been put forward as a result of consultations with local authorities in preparation for the public consultation.

Departmental Expenditure

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the total external spending by his Department was on private finance initiative (PFI) consultants in each of the last two years; how many full-time equivalent consultants were employed over this period; how many billed consultancy days there were per year; what the implied average cost of each PFI consultant was; how many consultancy firms were used by his Department over this period; and if he will make a statement.

Charlotte Atkins: The Department for Transport (including Executive Agencies) expenditure on external Private Finance consultants was £12,571,700 in 2003–04 and £7,595,500 to date in 2004–05.
	The Department does not retain information on the full-time equivalent consultants these figures represent, or on the number of billed consultant hours. Consultants are appointed on a variety of terms only some of which are based on staff numbers or time. These reasons also prevent us from calculating an average cost per consultant.
	The firms employed by the Department over this period were:
	Atis Real Weatherall, Atkins Management Consultants, WS Atkins, Aukett, Berwin Leighton Painser, Bullen, Carl Bro IBI, Close Resources, Deloitte, Denton Wilde Sapte, Ernst and Young, Flint and Neill, Halcrow, Hays Accountancy Personnel, Hedra, IBM UK, Jacobs, JKL and Hide Recruitment, John Matchett, Mott MacDonald, MVM Recruitment, Nabarro Nathanson, Office of Government Commerce, Owen Williams, Panell Kerr Forster, Partnerships UK, Pell Frischmann, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Project Management Recruitment, Qinetiq, Turner and Townsend, Willis, Yale Consulting and Yale Data Management Consultants.

Departmental Expenditure

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the total external spending by his Department was on public-private partnership (PPP) consultants in each of the last two years; how many full-time equivalent consultants were employed over this period; how many billed consultancy days there were per year; what the implied average cost of each PPP consultant was; how many consultancy firms were used by his Department over this period; and if he will make a statement.

Charlotte Atkins: The Department for Transport (including Executive Agencies) expenditure on external PPP consultants was £23,995,700 in 2003–04 and £14,377,300 to date in 2004–05. This total includes expenditure on PFI consultants.
	The Department does not retain information on the full time equivalent consultants these figures represent, or on the number of billed consultant hours. Consultants are appointed on a variety of terms only some of which are based on staff numbers or time. These reasons also prevent us from calculating an average cost per consultant.
	The firms employed by the Department over this period were:
	Atis Real Weatherall, Atkins Management Consultants, WS Atkins, Aukett, Berwin Leighton Painser, Bullen, Carl Bro IBI, Citigroup, Close Resources, CMS Cameron McKenna, Credit Suisse First Boston, CTRL Discretionary Purchase Auditor, CTRL Technical Disputes Panel, Deloitte, Denton Wilde Sapte, Dresdener Kleinwort, Ernst & Young, Flint & Neill, Halcrow, Michael Hamilton, Hays Accountancy Personnel, Hedra, Hyder Consulting, IBM UK, KHHD, Jacobs, JKL & Hide Recruitment, John Matchett, Mott MacDonald, Mott Parsons Gibb, MVM Recruitment, Nabarro Nathanson, Office of Government Commerce, Owen Williams, Panell Kerr Forster, Partnerships UK, Pell Frischmann, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Project Management Recruitment, Qinetiq, Turner & Townsend, Willis, Yale Consulting and Yale Data Management Consultants.

Driving (Drugs)

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he takes to advise the public on the possible effects on driving whilst taking (a) benzodiazepines, (b) tricyclic antidepressants and (c) anti histamines; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: Doctors and pharmacists should provide information on the effects on driving when dispensing prescriptions or other medicines. The current licensing system places a legal obligation on the applicant/licence holder to notify The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) of any medical condition which may affect their fitness to drive.
	DVLA provides advice to medical professionals through its "At a Glance Guide to the Current Medical Standards of Fitness to Drive", which is available on the Agency's website ( www.dvla.gov.uk).
	The Department is presently researching the attitudes of UK health professionals about providing 'fitness-to-drive' advice to the public. This includes an examination of advice given in relation to medication.

European Railway Agency

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he last met the Chairman of the Board of the European Railway Agency; and if he will make a statement on (a) the work of the Agency and (b) its relationship to the work of (i) the Strategic Rail Authority, (ii) the Office of the Rail Regulator and (iii) other bodies working within the railway industry which have statutory powers.

Tony McNulty: There are no plans to meet the Chairman of the Board of the European Rail Agency.
	The principal roles of the European Rail Agency established under Council Regulation 881/2004 are:
	to propose draft Technical Specifications on Interoperability (TSIs) (taking over from an industry co-ordinated process);
	to propose Common Safety Measures (CSMs) and Common Safety Targets (CSTs) which are brought into force through a comitology process;
	to undertake technical examinations on request from the Commission, on the compatibility of new national safety rules with TSIs or CSMs, and to submit an opinion to the Commission if it considers that any rule is incompatible with TSIs or CSMs, or does not allow CSTs to be reached;
	to provide, on request, technical opinions on safety-related matters referred to it by national regulatory bodies.
	The Agency was effectively only established in May 2004, following the adoption of Regulation 881/2004 on 29 April 2004, and has yet to start work. It is established as an advisory body for the European Commission with no autonomous executive powers, and therefore has no regulatory or statutory role in the UK.
	The TSIs, CSMs and CSTs replace existing industry-developed standards methods and targets rather than UK statutory provisions or regulatory roles. Enforcement of compliance with TSIs is the responsibility of the national Safety Authority.
	David Waboso from the Strategic Rail Authority is the UK Government's representative on the Administrative Board of the Agency.

Parliamentary Questions

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what target his Department sets for the maximum acceptable time to respond in full to a parliamentary question; and what percentage of answers given by his Department failed to meet this target in each parliamentary Session from 1997–98 to 2003–04.

Charlotte Atkins: The effective handling of parliamentary questions is an issue to which I and ministerial colleagues attach great importance.
	This Department aims to answer named day questions on the day specified and ordinary written questions within five working days of them appearing on the Order Paper.
	The information provided is in respect of the period since the formation of this Department on 29 May 2002.

Road Noise

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what percentage of the trunk road network has been resurfaced with quieter surfaces pursuant to the policy announced on 17 October 2001; and what percentage will be resurfaced in each of the next three years.

David Jamieson: holding answer 9 December 2004
	: The Highways Agency estimates that overall 27 per cent. of the trunk road network has been resurfaced with quieter surfaces. The Highways Agency is currently reviewing the programme for quieter surfaces over the next three years.

Road Noise

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many of the schemes for resurfacing concrete trunk roads with quieter materials which were announced by the Highways Agency on 17 October 2001 have been completed; and at what cost.

David Jamieson: holding answer 9 December 2004
	The announcement on 17 October 2001 detailed a list of concrete road schemes planned for resurfacing, together with confirmation that further studies were underway to identify additional sites that met the criteria for quieter surfacing.
	19 schemes have been completed at a total cost of £141.6 million.

Road Noise

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the trunk roads with concrete surfaces which have been opened since June 1988; what the results were of noise surveys in respect of each; and whether the actual noise levels recorded were significantly higher than those predicted at the time of the public inquiry.

David Jamieson: holding answer 13 December 2004
	The surveys that the Highways Agency undertook on trunk roads with concrete surfaces opened since June 1988 measured the average noise levels arising from vehicles and compared these with the average predicted noise levels used at public inquiry, or public consultation where no inquiry was required. The differences between measurements and predictions for these roads are given in the following table:
	
		
			 Road Road length (km) Noise difference (dB) 
		
		
			 Ml8: Junction 5–6 2.3 1.3 
			 M20: Junction 9–8 20.4 3.0 
			 M23: Junction 10–9 northbound 1.3 -0.7 
			 M1-A1 Link 15.5 5.2 
			 A11: Besthorpe-Wymondham Bypass 13.7 3.1 
			 A13: A1306 to M25 J30 3.0 0.6 
			 A27: Chichester-Havant 13.8 4.6 
			 A30: Honiton-Exeter 16.2 3.7 
			 A34: Peartree-Weston 8.0 5.7 
			 A35: Tolpuddle-Puddleton 7.2 2.6 
			 A50: Doveridge Bypass 4.0 4.5 
			 A50: Derby Southern Bypass 0.5 1.0 
			 A50: Foston-Hatton-Hilton Bypass 3.6 -0.4 
			 A52: Bottesford Bypass 4.8 1.7 
			 A249: M2-Iwade 7.9 1.6 
			 A419/A417: Cirencester and Latton Bypasses 14.2 5.0 
			 A483: B5445 to Welsh boundary 3.1 2.6 
		
	
	The criterion of significance applied to differences in noise levels is 3 dB and this criterion was met by eight of the roads surveyed.

Road Safety

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his Department's publicity budget for road safety is in the current year; and what his Department's expenditure on road safety publicity was in each of the last seven years.

David Jamieson: holding answer 13 December 2004
	The Department's publicity budget for road safety has increased from circa £6 million in 1997 to a budget of £14.1 million in this fiscal year, reflecting the increased commitment to publicity outlined in "Tomorrow's Roads Safer for Everyone" which was published in 2000 and set out the Government's road safety strategy and casualty reduction targets for 2010.
	The current Department for Transport was created in May 2002. Road safety publicity figures to support the THINK! road safety campaign were £14.9 million and £13.4 million in 2003–04 and 2002–03 respectively. Given Departmental reorganisations, individual figures for each of the last seven years could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Road Traffic Accidents

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many road traffic accidents resulted in (a) death and (b) serious injury in the most recent year for which figures are available; and in how many cases (i) the victim was aged under 15 and (ii) a driver over the age of 70 was involved.

David Jamieson: In 2003, there were 3,247 road traffic accidents that resulted in at least one fatality. Of these, 269 involved at least one casualty aged under 15, and 251 involved at least one driver or rider aged over 70.
	There were 28,913 road traffic accidents in 2003 that resulted in at least one serious injury (but no fatalities). Of these, 3,847 involved at least one casualty aged under 15, and 1,129 involved at least one driver or rider aged over 70.
	Personal injury road accident data in Great Britain are collected by the police and reported to the Department using the STATS 19 accident report format. Results are published in detail in "Road Casualties Great Britain—Annual Report". The report for 2003 was published on 30 September 2004 and a copy placed in the House of Commons Library.

Road Traffic Accidents

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport in what proportion of road traffic accidents the victim was (a) a pedestrian and (b) a cyclist in the last period for which figures are available, broken down by age.

David Jamieson: The information requested is shown in the following tables.
	
		Accidents involving at least one pedestrian casualty: GB 2003 -- Accidents/Percentage
		
			 Age group Number Percentage(3) 
		
		
			 0–15 12,235 43 
			 16–59 17,037 10 
			 60 + 4,926 19 
		
	
	(3) Accidents involving pedestrian casualties as a percentage of all accidents involving a casualty of that age group.
	
		Accidents involving at least one pedal cyclist casualty: GB 2003 -- Accidents/Percentage
		
			 Age group Number Percentage(4) 
		
		
			 0–15 4,685 17 
			 16–59 10,657 6 
			 60 + 933 4 
		
	
	(4) Accidents involving pedal cyclists casualties as a percentage of all accidents involving a casualty of that age group.

Road Traffic Accidents

Boris Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his latest estimate is of the number of (a) fatal, (b) serious and (c) non-serious injuries thought to have been caused by mobile phone use by (i) cyclists and (ii) other road users in a year.

David Jamieson: The information requested is not available.

Roadside Drug Tests

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the powers under the Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003 to carry out roadside drug tests will be utilised; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: holding answer 13 December 2004
	Section 6B(2) of the Road Traffic Act 1988 (as amended by the Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003) requires the Secretary of State to issue a Code of Practice that trained police officers must use when administering roadside preliminary impairment testing, such as the 'walk and turn test'. This will be issued shortly to all police forces in Great Britain and will enable them to require drivers to take part in such testing, which is designed to help officers reach a judgment whether a driver may be impaired.
	The police will be further assisted in dealing with suspect drivers when they are able to undertake preliminary testing at the roadside for the presence of drugs under section 6C of the Act. That requires equipment that must be type approved. The specification for type approval is in preparation by the Home Office who hope that it will be finalised in the first half of next year. Once devices are type approved, the police will be able to use them.

Roadside Drug Tests

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people killed in motor accidents in each of the last 10 years had illegal drugs present in their body at the time of the accident; and how many of these were (a) vehicle drivers, (b) vehicle passengers, (c) motor cyclists, (d) cyclists and (e) pedestrians.

David Jamieson: holding answer 13 December 2004
	This information is not collected by the police. A study by TRL Ltd. on behalf of the Department and published in 2000 surveyed a sample of fatal road accident victims for the presence of drugs, and alcohol, from 1996 to 2000. That gave figures for the victims covered by the study where traces of any drugs (legal and illegal) were found in their body. The figures reproduced in the table are taken from that study. The presence of drugs is not evidence of accident causation, though there may be an association. The full report (TRL495) is available on-line at www.trl.co.uk/1024/mainpage.asp?page=141.
	
		All drug use: by road user group
		
			  Drivers Riders Passengers Pedestrians Cyclists Total 
		
		
			 Total 533 246 222 149 34 1,184 
			   
			 No drugs   
			 Number 411 196 144 119 29 899 
			 Percentage 77.1 79.7 64.9 79.9 85.3 — 
			
			 Single drug   
			 Number 92 33 60 22 3 210 
			 Percentage 17.3 13.4 27.0 14.8 8.8 — 
			
			 Multiple drugs   
			 Number 30 17 18 8 2 75 
			 Percentage 5.6 6.9 8.1 5.4 5.9 —

Search and Rescue

John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  how much public expenditure has been spent in each financial year since 1997–98 on search and rescue activities, broken down by (a) civil aeronautical and (b) maritime activities;
	(2)  how many members of staff were working in each financial year since 1997–98 on search and rescue activities, broken down by (a) civil aeronautical and (b) maritime activities.

David Jamieson: The Department for Transport has overall policy responsibility for both maritime and civil aeronautical search and rescue in the UK search and rescue region. The organisation of search and rescue is an amalgam of civil, military, maritime and aeronautical assets. The difficulty of separating these different aspects should be borne in mind when considering this answer.
	The public expenditure for maritime search and rescue is given in the following table for the period since the Maritime and Coastguard Agency was established. The very substantial contributions to maritime search and rescue made by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution are not included.
	
		
			  Actual public expenditure(5) on maritime search and rescue activities (nearest £ million) 
		
		
			 1997–98 n/a 
			 1998–99 30 
			 1999–2000 30 
			 2000–01 35 
			 2001–02 36 
			 2002–03 39 
			 2003–04 40 
		
	
	(5) Capital expenditure is not included.
	The Maritime and Coastguard Agency had the following numbers of staff working on maritime search and rescue activities.
	
		Number
		
			  Employees(6) Auxiliary coastguards 
		
		
			 1997–98 539.0 3,115 
			 1998–99 548.0 3,127 
			 1999–00 607.5 3,150 
			 2000–01 607.7 3,285 
			 2001–02 588.4 3,306 
			 2002–03 574.3 3,359 
			 2003–04 577.2 3,427 
		
	
	(6) All available uniformed coastguards , full-time equivalents.
	Note:
	These are the average numbers of staff employed during the year. The data for 1997–98 refer to HM Coastguard.
	The Ministry of Defence provides declared search and rescue facilities to cover military operations, exercises and training with the UK Search and Rescue Region. Although these resources are established for military purposes, it is the Ministry's policy to render assistance whenever possible to other persons, aircraft or vessels in distress. In addition to the expenditure given above my Department reimburses the Ministry of Defence for the costs of using some of its military assets for civil aeronautical and maritime search and rescue. Since 1998–99 this has amounted to an average of £1.7 million each year.
	The Department does not fully distinguish between public expenditure on civil aeronautical and maritime search and rescue. Additionally, the Ministry of Defence make further contributions to civil aeronautical and maritime search and rescue but the data is not held centrally, and to calculate it could only be done at disproportionate cost.

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether departmental special advisers have made speeches in their official capacity since May 1997.

Charlotte Atkins: The Department was formed in May 2002. Since then, special advisers have not given any speeches in their official capacity. If speeches were to be made these would be conducted in accordance with the Code of Conduct for special advisers.

Station Car Parks

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received on the increases in car park charges at rail stations run by South Eastern Trains; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: The Secretary of State and the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) have received correspondence about car park charges at stations run by South Eastern Trains. While certain key fares are regulated through the SRA's franchise agreements with train operators, car parking charges are not. The Government therefore have no locus in the matter.

Thameslink

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much per commuter mile was paid by Thameslink to the Government in each of the last three years; what the total payments from Thameslink have been in each of the last three years; if he will change the contractual arrangements with Thameslink so that such contributions from commuters are not required; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: Information on franchise payment/subsidy by year and per passenger kilometre for each train operating company is published in the Strategic Rail Authority's Annual Reports. Copies are placed in the Library of the House. There are no plans to change the contractual terms of Thameslink's franchise.

Thameslink

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the estimated cost of the Thameslink 2000 project is; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: The estimated cost of the Thameslink upgrade project is £3 billion.

Thelwall Viaduct

Helen Southworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress has been made on repair works to the M6 Thelwall viaduct; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: The Highways Agency's plans for a phased re-opening of the M6 Motorway Thelwall Viaduct, commencing prior to Christmas 2004.
	The Highways Agency has been working to achieve the earliest possible completion of the bearing replacement works to allow full re-opening of the viaduct. I am pleased to report that the final few bearings are now being put into place on the viaduct and, subject to final checks, the agency hope to re-open the northbound viaduct on 20 December.
	Further resurfacing works will be required on the northbound carriageway and this work will be carried out before the viaduct is opened to traffic. If this work is delayed due to adverse weather conditions, it will be carried out at night to minimise inconvenience to motorists and will start immediately before Christmas and finish early in the new year.
	Following the re-opening of the northbound viaduct, after the resurfacing works are complete, work will start on the southbound viaduct to replace the worn out road surfacing and expansion joints. This work will take place over the Christmas and new year period and will continue throughout January and into early February, and involve continuously running three narrow lanes. The speed restrictions of 40 mph will remain in place during this time. When this work is completed, during February 2005, the southbound viaduct can also be fully re-opened.

Traffic Speed Limits

Peter Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he plans to enable local authorities to display traffic speed limit repeater signs on all main and through roads.

David Jamieson: Local authorities are already required to place speed limit repeater signs on those roads where a local speed limit has been implemented by Order. Repeater signs are however strictly prohibited on street lit roads where a 30mph speed limit is in force (Restricted Roads) and unlit roads where the national speed limit is in force. This removes the need to sign every road in the country. This provision has been in place for many years and research shows the current arrangement is well understood

HOME DEPARTMENT

Budd Inquiry

Peter Viggers: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what facilities are being made available to Sir Alan Budd to (a) see papers and (b) question individuals in connection with the inquiry into the conduct of the Home Secretary; and under what statutory authority these facilities will be made available;
	(2)  under what statutory authority Sir Alan Budd will carry out his inquiry into the conduct of the Home Secretary.

David Blunkett: holding answer 6 December 2004
	No statutory authority is necessary for this investigation. Home Office officials are providing the material that Sir Alan Budd requests and answering the questions that he may ask. The Home Office has provided the secretarial support that Sir Alan Budd requested.

Budd Inquiry

Peter Viggers: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  whether Sir Alan Budd will be remunerated for carrying out his inquiry on the conduct of the Home Secretary;
	(2)  who is reimbursing the expenses of Sir Alan Budd in connection with his inquiry into the conduct of the Home Secretary.

David Blunkett: holding answer 6 December 2004
	Sir Alan will not be remunerated for his investigation but the Home Office will reimburse him for expenses related to the conduct of it.

CCTV (Wandsworth)

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much has been spent on CCTV in the London borough of Wandsworth in each of the last five years.

Hazel Blears: Between 1999 and 2002 the Home Office gave a total of £311,500 to the London borough of Wandsworth under the Close Circuit Television initiatives, which formed part of the Crime Reduction Programme.
	Since the completion of the Crime Reduction Programme, crime reduction funding has been allocated directly to the local Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership through the Building Safer Communities Fund and to the police Basic Command Unit (BCU) through the BCU fund. These funding streams finance a variety of interventions, including CCTV, to tackle local crime priorities. Information about the exact allocation of that funding is not held centrally.

Community Support Officers

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many community support officers are in post; and how many he expects will be in post in each month up to March 2005.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 7 December 2004
	At the end of September there were 4,199 community support officers (CSOs) in post. We do not monitor CSO recruitment on a monthly basis but we expect that there will be at least 5,500 CSOs in post by the end of March 2005. Forces are recruiting to fill the CSO posts allocated to them under the third round of CSO funding, announced in May, and also the additional CSOs posts allocated under the first round of the Neighbourhood Policing Fund, which were announced on 23 November.

Departmental Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the total cost to his Department was for accountancy services in each of the last two years.

Fiona Mactaggart: The Home Office has interpreted accounting services to mean all services provided by professionally qualified accountants whether employed or bought in. The method of accounting for accountant salaries and bought in services does not allow for these to be separately identified from central records. It is not possible to provide this information without disproportionate costs being incurred.

Departmental Staff

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff were employed by (a) his Department and (b) its agencies in each year from April 1997 to April 2004; what the reasons are for the change in staff numbers; and if he will make a statement.

Fiona Mactaggart: holding answer 1 December 2004
	The following table provides the number of staff employed in the Home Office and its agencies from April 1997 to April 2004.
	
		
			 Department/agency 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 
		
		
			 Non-agency Home Office (including Immigration  and Nationality but excluding Executive agencies) 9,358 8,037 7,711 9,270 13,020 13,550 16,540 18,780 
			 Prison Service 37,704 39,363 38,719 40,560 41,940 41,780 43,210 45,280 
			 United Kingdom Passport Agency (UKPA) 1,407 1,276 1,245 1,320 2,270 2,770 2,600 2,450 
			 Criminal Records Bureau — — — — — — — 340 
			 Forensic Science Service 1,185 1,238 1,638 1,780 2,190 2,420 2,660 2,450 
			 Asset Recovery Agency — — — — — — — 90 
			 Fire Service College 215 253 188 180 190 — — — 
		
	
	Note:
	All figures within the table are full-time equivalents of permanent staff and this information can be found on the Cabinet Office website: up to 1 September 2003, Criminal Records Bureau figures were incorporated within those for the United Kingdom Passport Office.
	Changes in the numbers of permanent civil servants reflect the operational needs within Immigration and Nationality, UKPA and the Prison Service. Staff numbers in the non-agency Home Office have changed mostly in Immigration and Nationality where there had been significant increases in asylum applications, leave to remain decisions, the transfer in of the responsibility for processing work permits and the increased number of staff in border controls. Staff numbers in UKPA have changed as a result of the increased workloads. Staff numbers Prison Service have changed as a result of the growth of the prison population.
	The Government remain committed to reducing the size of the Home Office headquarters by the equivalent of 2,700 posts by 2007–08 and these changes will be reflected in future staff levels.

Departmental Websites

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his Department's .gov.uk websites comply with the World Wide Web Consortium's Web Content Accessibility Guidelines adopted by the Government in 2001; and if he will make a statement.

Fiona Mactaggart: The Home Office takes the issue of accessibility very seriously and we do strive to maintain usability and accessibility standards on all our websites.
	We recently commissioned an audit of a selection of our sites against the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines and have embarked on a programme of work to implement changes where necessary. This is being run alongside a bigger programme of website rationalisation and redevelopment which will be completed in 2005

Home Office (Lighting)

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reason the lights in the new Home Office building in Marsham street are being left on for 24 hours a day; and if he will make a statement on the energy efficiency of lighting on the Home Office estate.

Fiona Mactaggart: The developer is currently commissioning the building at 2 Marsham Street. This involves 24 hour working to test building system—hence the lighting required. 2 Marsham street is due to be handed over to the Home Office on 26 January 2005 and until then the developer will meet the costs of the electricity. When the building becomes operational, the lighting system will sense movement and will not operate unless people are present. The contract requires Anne's Gate Property, our PFI partner, to operate the building at levels that are at least 10 per cent. below the best practice benchmark in the Government's Energy Efficiency Best Practice Programme Energy Use in Offices Guide.
	The Home Office is committed to reducing energy consumption across its estate. As part of the cross Government targets contained in the Framework for Sustainable Development on the Government Estate, the Department will benchmark its key sites to identify those, which have the highest consumption per square metre. Energy surveys will be undertaken at those sites and no cost/low cost measures implemented. Best practice guidance will also be disseminated to building managers.
	The Home Office undertook a campaign earlier this year, aimed at encouraging staff to switch off lights, IT and electrical equipment. This involved a poster competition, articles on the Department's intranet and in-house magazine.

Home Office Legislation

Richard Shepherd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list all Home Office Bills that have been enacted since May 1997.

Fiona Mactaggart: holding answer 29 November 2004
	Since the 1997 General Election 45 Bills on Home Office policy areas have received Royal Assent. These are:
	Royal Assent received during the 1997–98 Session
	Firearms (Amendment) (No.2) Act—Royal Assent received 27 November 1997
	Special Immigration Appeals Commission Act—Royal Assent received 17 December 1997
	Criminal Justice (International Co-Operation) Act—Royal Assent received 9 July 1998
	Data Protection Act—Royal Assent received 16 July 1998
	Crime and Disorder Act—Royal Assent received 31 July 1998
	Criminal Justice (Terrorism and Conspiracy) Act—Royal Assent received September 1998
	Human Rights Act—Royal Assent received 9 November 1998
	Registration of Political Parties Act—Royal Assent received 19 November 1998
	Royal Assent received during the 1998–99 Session
	European Parliamentary Elections Act—Royal Assent received 14 January 1999
	Breeding and Sale of Dogs (Welfare) Act—Royal Assent received 30 June 1999
	Football (Offences and Disorder) Act—Royal Assent received 27 July 1999
	Criminal Cases Review (Insanity) Act—Royal Assent received 27 July 1999
	Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act—Royal Assent received 27 July 1999
	Immigration and Asylum Act—Royal Assent received 11 November 1999
	Royal Assent received during the 1999–2000 Session
	Representation of the People Act—Royal Assent received 9 March 2000
	Terrorism Act—Royal Assent received 20 July 2000
	Football (Disorder) Act—Royal Assent received 28 July 2000
	Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act—Royal Assent received 28 July 2000
	Licensing (Young Persons) Act—Royal Assent received 23 November 2000
	Disqualifications Act—Royal Assent received 30 November 2000
	Freedom of Information Act—Royal Assent received 30 November 2000
	Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act—Royal Assent received 30 November 2000
	Race Relations (Amendment) Act—Royal Assent received 30 November 2000
	Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act—Royal Assent received 30 November 2000
	Criminal Justice and Court Services Act—Royal Assent received 30 November 2000
	Royal Assent received during the 2000–01 Session
	Vehicles (Crime) Act—Royal Assent received 10 April 2001
	Election Publications Act—Royal Assent received 10 April 2001
	Elections Act—Royal Assent received 10 April 2001
	Criminal Justice and Police Act—Royal Assent received 11 May 2001
	House of Commons (Removal of Clergy Disqualification) Act—Royal Assent received 11 May 2001
	Private Security Industry Act—Royal Assent received 11 May 2001
	Royal Assent received during the 2001–02 Session
	Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act—Royal Assent received 13 December 2001
	Football Disorder (Amendment) Act—Royal Assent received 1 May 2002
	Proceeds of Crime Act—Royal Assent received 24 July 2002
	Police Reform Act—Royal Assent received 24 July 2002
	Mobile Telephones (Reprogramming) Act—Royal Assent received 24 July 2002
	Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act—Royal Assent received 7 November 2002
	Royal Assent received during the 2002–03 Session
	Criminal Justice Act—Royal Assent received 20 November 2003
	Sexual Offences Act—Royal Assent received 20 November 2003
	Crime (International Co-operation) Act—Royal Assent received 30 October 2003
	Extradition Act—Royal Assent received 20 November 2003
	Anti-Social Behaviour Act—Royal Assent received 20 November 2003
	Female Genital Mutilation Act—Royal Assent received 30 October 2003
	Royal Assent received during the 2003–04 Session
	Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants) Act Royal Assent received 22 July 2004
	Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act—Royal Assent received 15 November 2004

Parliamentary Questions

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many written parliamentary questions tabled in the last Session of Parliament were answered by his Department with the response 'it has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation'.

Fiona Mactaggart: holding answer 2 December 2004
	The total number of written questions that were answered with the response, "It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation" was 245. Of these, 171 were tabled in the five days leading up to prorogation.
	The Department did provide substantive answers to 496 parliamentary questions in the four days up to Prorogation.
	Ministers make every effort to answer questions substantively in accordance with performance guidelines and especially before Prorogation. However this is not always possible. Where right hon. and hon. Members did not receive a substantive response it is open to them to re-table their question this Session.

Parliamentary Questions

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many questions to his Department remained unanswered at prorogation; and what percentage of these Questions had been tabled (a) less than one month, (b) between one and three months and (c) more than three months previously;
	(2)  what the average time taken by his Department to respond to a written parliamentary question was in the last parliamentary Session.

Fiona Mactaggart: holding answer 29 November 2004
	The total number of written questions for which a substantive answer was not provided before the end of Session was 245. Of which 171 were tabled in the five days leading up to Prorogation. The Department did provide substantive answers to 496 parliamentary questions in the four days up to Prorogation. The number and percentage of these unanswered questions tabled less than one month, between one and three months and more than three months previously are provided in the table:
	
		
			  Number Percentage 
		
		
			 Number of PQs tabled less than one month 205 84 
			 Between one and three months 26 10 
			 Over three months 14 6 
			 Total 245  
		
	
	Note:
	Percentages have been rounded to the nearest whole number
	Ministers make every effort to answer questions substantively in accordance with performance guidelines and especially before Prorogation. However this is not always possible. Where right hon. and hon. Members did not receive a substantive response it is open to them to re-table their question this session.
	Departmental records show that the average time to respond to a written parliamentary question during the last Session was 14 days.

Police Stations (Essex)

John Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the police stations in Essex which have been (a) opened and (b) closed in each year since 1979.

Hazel Blears: The management of the police estate and allocation of resources are matters for each police authority and the chief officer.

Port Security

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much has been spent on providing security at ports in each year since 1997, broken down by location.

David Jamieson: I have been asked to reply.
	The costs of providing security measures at ports are borne directly by industry and the information is not held centrally. The Department is conscious of the costs associated with implementing measures designed to increase security and will continue to work closely with industry to ensure that the required measures are proportionate, pragmatic and sustainable.

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many complaints were made by departmental civil servants regarding the conduct of special advisers between 31 March 2003 and 31 March 2004;
	(2)  whether he has been informed of breaches of the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers in his Department since its implementation;
	(3)  how many appeals were made by civil servants to the Civil Service Commissioners regarding special advisers in his Department between 31 March 2003 and 31 March 2004 and when each appeal was lodged.

David Blunkett: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office on 8 December 2004, Official Report, column 578W.

Stolen Dogs

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the number of dogs stolen in England in each of the last three years.

Hazel Blears: This information is not collected centrally.

DEFENCE

Cadet Services

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what (a) financial and (b) other assistance is given by his Department to (i) sea cadets, (ii) army cadets and (iii) air cadets.

Ivor Caplin: The Ministry of Defence provides the following, in terms of (a) financial, and (b) further assistance:
	Sea Cadets
	The Sea Cadets are run and administered by the Marine Society/Sea Cadet Association (the parent charity). The total budget provided to the Marine Society/Sea Cadet Association and direct by MOD is £9.4 million per year. The use of Naval training establishments and sea training days on HM ships is uncosted.
	Army Cadets
	The Army Cadets are run and administered by the MOD. The total budget provided to the Army Cadets is £50 million, which comprises:
	
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			 Salaries (all forms) 32 
			 Cadets estate programme. 14 
			 Travel and subsistence 1 
			 Cadet activities 3 
		
	
	Further assistance, in the form of the use of Army training establishments and attendance on courses and parades organised and administered by the Regular Army is uncosted.
	Air Cadets
	The Air Cadets are run and administered by the MOD. The total budget provided to the Air Cadets for 2004–05 is £22 million.
	Further assistance in the form of the use of RAF training establishments and attendance on courses and parades organised and administered by the RAF is uncosted.

Cadet Services

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what guidance was given to cadet units in the south-east of England about carrying firearms on Remembrance Sunday; what role Ministers had in issuing guidance; and if he will make a statement.

Ivor Caplin: Ministers had no role whatsoever in issuing guidance regarding cadets on Remembrance Sunday. All cadet guidance is issued from the various Cadet Force headquarters.
	The Air Training Corps did issue specific instructions that all participants in Remembrance Day parades were not to carry drill weapons. In the south-east, (including Eastbourne) the Sea Cadets were told that it was paramount to harmonise with the prevailing view of the other Cadet Forces. The Army Cadet Force and the Combined Cadet Force do not routinely carry either real or drill weapons on parade. As a consequence, no drill weapons were paraded at the Eastbourne Remembrance Day Parade.

Departmental Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what the total external spending by his Department was on public private partnership (PPP) consultants in each of the last two years; how many full-time equivalent consultants were employed over this period; how many billed consultancy days there were per year; what the implied average cost of each PPP consultant was; how many consultancy firms were used by his Department over this period; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what the total external spending by his Department was on private finance initiative (PFI) consultants in each of the last two years; how many full-time equivalent consultants were employed over this period; how many billed consultancy days there were per year; what the implied average cost of each PFI consultant was; how many consultancy firms were used by his Department over this period; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The Department maintains a Framework Agreement that provides a list of consultancy companies that have been approved to provide management and related services and legal services consultancy to PPP Integrated Project Teams (IPTs). Companies listed in the Agreement, however, are not always able to provide specialist consultancy services; IPTs are therefore able to engage specialist firms that are not listed in the Framework Agreement.
	The use of consultants is monitored but not to the level of detail listed in the question. As a result the information requested in the question is not held centrally and to provide it the Department would incur disproportionate cost. However, the information that can be provided regarding the use and cost of consultants is as follows:
	
		Use of the Framework Agreement
		
			  Financial year 2002–03 Financial year 2003–04 
			 Number of companies used Invoices submitted Value (£ million) Invoices submitted Value (£ million) 
		
		
			 19 524 24.368 1,187 66.367 
		
	
	In addition, over the two year period, two specialist companies were engaged at a cost of £2.231 million.

Departmental Finance

Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence by how much his Department's capital budget was underspent in financial year 2003–04.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 9 December 2004
	Final outturn against the Ministry of Defence's 2003–04 Capital Departmental Expenditure Limit for RfR (Request for resources) (provision of defence capability) is set out at page 35 of the MOD's Annual Report and Accounts (HC 1080). This shows an outturn of £5,648 million against a DEL of £6,088 million; an underspend of £440 million.

Departmental Finance

Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what changes to his Department's depreciation figures occurred between the publication of the 2004 Budget (HC 701, 2003–04) and the pre-Budget report (CM 6408, 2004–05); and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 9 December 2004
	As explained at paragraph 64 of the Ministry of Defence's Annual Report and Accounts (HC 1080) the MOD's final asset depreciation figures for 2003–04 were lower than expected because the Quinquennial Review of Fixed Assets necessary under Modified Historic Cost Accounting and carried out towards the end of the financial year resulted in fewer downward valuations, and therefore smaller accelerated depreciated costs, than had been anticipated.

Departmental Telephones

Colin Breed: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what measures he has taken to ensure that telephones in his Department are not used by staff for making unauthorised personal calls to international numbers.

Ivor Caplin: Direct dial access to international civil numbers is granted only to those staff who require it for the course of their official duties.

Environmental Tectonics

Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what consultations his Department has had with Environmental Tectonics Corporation regarding that company's involvement in the Authentic Tactical Flight Simulator project;
	(2)  what part human centrifuge technology will play in the proposed Authentic Tactical Flight Simulator project; and what he estimates the cost of this project to be.

Adam Ingram: Although Environmental Tectonics Corporation has approached the Ministry of Defence to actively market a Tactical Flight Simulator there have been no consultations with the company on this product and none are planned.

Future Surface Combatant

Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what effect the coherency package for British shipyards has had on the decision to reassess the requirement for the Future Surface Combatant.

Adam Ingram: The Future Surface Combatant (FSC) project is being reviewed together with all other military maritime programmes as part of the Maritime Coherence study, and a range of options is being considered. The project is, in any case, still in its concept phase. As such no decisions have yet been taken about the timescale for delivering the FSC capability, nor about the platform solution.

Peacekeeping

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list he countries in which British peacekeeping forces are deployed; and how many British peacekeeping forces were employed in peacekeeping operations on the latest date for which figures are available.

Adam Ingram: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 18 November 2004, Official Report, column 1846W.

Personnel Survey

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library the (a) questions asked and (b) responses given to the seventh serving personnel survey for the Army conducted in June.

Ivor Caplin: I can confirm that copies of the questions asked in the seventh Army Serving Personnel survey, and the responses given, will be placed in the Library of the House in the new year.

QinetiQ

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what controls govern the intellectual property rights developed by the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency following its transfer to QinetiQ, with particular reference to confidentiality commitments placed on QinetiQ staff who leave its employ.

Adam Ingram: With a few exceptions, intellectual property rights generated within those parts of the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency that were transferred to QinetiQ belong to QinetiQ. MOD retains the right to use this intellectual property free of charge for defence purposes. A procedure is in place that requires QinetiQ to seek MOD pre-clearance to any proposal for the exploitation of any sensitive technology.
	Employees of any organisation are free to pursue their careers elsewhere, but have an obligation not to use or disclose confidential information belonging to their ex-employer. In this regard, ex-employees of QinetiQ are no different from ex-employees of any other organisation. Many organisations, including QinetiQ, supplement the common law position with specific obligations in their terms and conditions of employment. It is also understood that QinetiQ reminds employees of their obligations to maintain confidentiality on leaving QinetiQ's employment and seeks to enforce these obligations if it appears necessary to do so.
	The Official Secrets Act also applies to employees of QinetiQ. Employees leaving QinetiQ are reminded of their obligations under the Act.

Research and Development

Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many research and development procurement opportunities were disseminated by his Department to small and medium-sized enterprises registered through the Small Business Research Initiative web portal in each year since 2001–02, including figures for 2004–05 to date; and what the total value of the opportunities was in each case.

Adam Ingram: The Defence Suppliers Service acts as a focal point within the Ministry of Defence to provide advice and guidance to companies interested in becoming defence suppliers, either directly or indirectly. They also provide a variety of access media to benefit small and medium sized enterprises comprising helpdesk facility, events and seminars, and web portals; the Small Business Research Initiative web portal is one of these. However, we do not hold centrally the information on dissemination of information through any particular means.

Research and Development

Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the expenditure was by (a) his Department and (b) agencies for which his Department is responsible on research and development work by organisations other than university departments, Government-funded research establishments or private sector companies in each year since 2001–02.

Adam Ingram: The following table shows total expenditure on R and D activity by (a) MOD with its trading fund agencies (which have been taken not to be Government funded research establishments) and (b) expenditure on R and D activity by the trading fund agencies themselves other than that undertaken by university departments, Government funded research establishments or private sector companies. This has been presented for the last two financial years for which data are available. Figures for 2003–04 will be published in 2005 by the Office for National Statistics in "Government Expenditure on Research and Development". The term "Department" has been interpreted as the MOD not including its trading fund agencies (ie ABRO, DARA, Met Office, DSTL and Hydrographic Office). This aligns with the MOD Annual Report and Accounts.
	
		
			 Trading fund agency £ million 
		
		
			 Departmental R and D expenditure with trading fund agencies—2001–02(7) 
			 DSTL 276 
			 DERA(8) 173 
			 Met Office 16 
			 ABRO 0 
			 DARA 0 
			 Hydrographic Office 0 
			   
			 R and D expenditure by MOD trading fund agencies—2001–02(7)(3)(10) with other than universities, Government funded research establishments and private companies 
			 DSTL 0 
			 DERA(8) 0 
			 Met Office 0 
			 ABRO 0 
			 DARA 0 
			 Hydrographic Office 0 
			   
			 Departmental R and D expenditure with trading fund agencies—2002–03(7) 
			 DSTL 296 
			 Met Office 15 
			 ABRO 0 
			 DARA 0 
			 Hydrographic Office 0 
			   
			 R and D expenditure by MOD trading fund agencies 2002–03(7)(3)(10) with other than universities, Government funded research establishments and private companies 
			 DSTL 0 
			 Met Office 0.2 
			 ABRO 0 
			 DARA 0 
			 Hydrographic Office 0 
		
	
	(7) Departmental expenditure figures have been rounded to the nearest £ million, sums spent by trading fund agencies have been rounded to the nearest £100,000.
	(8) On 1 July 2001 DERA was split into two organisations: the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) (about a quarter of DERA) staying as a trading fund within MOD, and QinetiQ, the remainder, becoming a private (extramural) company.
	(9) Includes expenditure with Industrial Research Associations and small amounts with "others", ie non-profit institutions (such as charities) and individuals performing research but not as a business.
	(10) Expenditure by the Department with Industrial Research Associations and "others" is small and has been lost in the roundings.
	(3)

Research and Development

Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what expenditure on research and development was made by each agency sponsored by his Department in each year since 2001–02; and what percentage this represented of that agency's total expenditure in each year.

Adam Ingram: The following tables show total expenditure on external R and D contract activity by MOD agencies who are known to have spent moneys on R and D tasks, and the percentage that this represents in terms of total agency annual turnover. Agencies have been taken as referring to Trading Fund Agencies only. This has been presented for the last two financial years for which data are available. Figures for 2003–04 will be published in 2005 by the Office for National Statistics in "Government Expenditure on Research and Development".
	
		R and D Expenditure by MOD Trading Fund Agencies—2001–02(11) , (11) 
		
			 Trading Fund Agencies Expenditure on R and D (£ million) Percentage of agency annual turnover(13) 
		
		
			 DSTL/DERA(11) 141.7 28.4 
			 Met Office 1.0 0.6 
			 ABRO 0 — 
			 DARA 0 — 
			 Hydrographic Office(13) 1.8 3.7 
		
	
	(11) On 1 July 2001 DERA was split into two organisations: the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) (about a quarter of DERA) staying as a Trading Fund within MOD, and QinetiQ, the remainder, becoming a private (extramural) company.
	(12) Sums spent by trading fund agencies have been rounded to the nearest one hundred thousand pounds.
	(13) For UKHO the expenditure is expressed as a percentage of total operating expenditure excluding interest.
	
		R and D Expenditure by MOD Trading Funds Agencies—2002–03(14)
		
			 Trading Fund Agencies Expenditure on R and D (£ million) Percentage of agency annual turnover(15) 
		
		
			 DSTL 73.4 21.4 
			 Met Office 1.3 0.8 
			 ABRO 0 — 
			 DARA 0 — 
			 Hydrographic Office(15) 2.1 4.0 
		
	
	(14) Sums spent by trading fund agencies have been rounded to the nearest one hundred thousand pounds.
	(15) For UKHO the expenditure is expressed as a percentage of total operating expenditure excluding interest.

Research and Development

Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much was spent by his Department on research and development in each year since 2001–02; and what percentage of total Departmental expenditure this represented in each year.

Adam Ingram: The following table shows total Ministry of Defence expenditure on R and D activity for the last three financial years for which data are available. Figures are inclusive of non-recoverable VAT and presented in £ millions. Because of transitional arrangements with the introduction of Resource Accounting and Budgeting, the figures from the years 2001–02 and 2002–03 are not expressed as a percentage of "Defence Spending". Figures for 2001–02 and 2002–03 are expressed as a percentage of the Net Cash Requirement (NCR). The Net Cash Requirement (NCR) is the actual money that MOD requests from the Government in order to fund its activities. The NCR takes account of movements in working capital levels (debtors, creditors, stock) while excluding all non-cash costs.
	
		
			  MOD Departmental Research and Development expenditure (£ million)  Percentage of Defence spending 
		
		
			 2001–02 2,057 8 
			 2002–03 2,734 10 
			 2003–04 2,677 9 
		
	
	Defence Spending is defined as the sum of the resource and capital budgets, net of depreciation and impairments.
	The term "Department" has been interpreted as the MOD not including its Trading Fund Agencies (i.e. ABRO, DARA, Met Office, DSTL and Hydrographic Office). This aligns with the MOD Annual Report and Accounts.

Research and Development

Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what expenditure has been made by (a) his Department and (b) agencies for which his Department is responsible for research and development projects undertaken by overseas Government laboratories or research establishments, including collaborative Government-funded laboratories and research establishments in each year since 2001–02.

Adam Ingram: The Ministry of Defence welcomes collaboration with foreign partners where this will bring benefits to the United Kingdom. In these cases MOD seeks to align UK activities and those of other Governments for mutual benefit, rather than funding overseas bodies that conduct research. The exact breakdown of the total activity is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, the central expenditure for facilitating international research collaboration over the period requested is provided in the following table. The figures for 2004–05 represent allocation rather than expenditure.
	
		£ million
		
			 Financial year Expenditure 
		
		
			 2001–02 5.4 
			 2002–03 6.2 
			 2003–04 6.2 
			 2004–05 (16)6.3 
		
	
	(16) Allocation

Research and Development

Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what expenditure was made by (a) his Department and (b) agencies for which his Department is responsible for research and development projects undertaken by university departments and research centres in the UK in each year since 2001–02.

Adam Ingram: The following table shows total expenditure on R and D activity for (a) Ministry of Defence and (b) for MOD Trading Fund agencies with universities and/or research centres. This has been presented for the last two financial years for which data are available. Figures for 2003–04 will be published by the Office of National Statistics in "Government Expenditure on Research and Development" in 2005. The term "Department" has been interpreted as the MOD not including its Trading Fund Agencies (i.e. ABRO, DARA, Met Office, DSTL and Hydrographic Office). This aligns with the MOD Annual Report and Accounts.
	
		£ million
		
			  R and D expenditure with universities and research centres(17) 
		
		
			 2001–02  
			 Department 0 
			   
			 Trading fund agencies  
			 DSTL/DERA(18) 15.7 
			 Met office 0.8 
			 ABRO 0 
			 DARA 0 
			 Hydrographic office 0 
			   
			 2002–03  
			 Department 0 
			   
			 Trading fund agencies  
			 DSTL 8.2 
			 Met office 0 
			 ABRO 0 
			 DARA 0 
			 Hydrographic office 0 
		
	
	(17) Departmental expenditure figures have been rounded to the nearest £ million. Sums spent by trading fund agencies have been rounded to the nearest £100,000.
	(18) On 1 July 2001 DERA was split into two organisations: the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) (about a quarter of DERA) staying as a Trading Fund within MOD, and QinetiQ, the remainder, becoming a private (extramural) company.

Research and Development

Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what expenditure was made by (a) his Department and (b) agencies for which his Department is responsible for research and development projects undertaken by private sector companies in each year since 2001–02.

Adam Ingram: The following table shows total expenditure on R and D activity for (a) MOD and (b) MOD agencies which have been undertaken by private sector companies. This has been presented for the last two financial years for which data are available. Figures for 2003–04 will be published in 2005 by the Office of National Statistics in "Government Expenditure on Research and Development". The term "Department" has been interpreted as the MOD not including its Trading Fund Agencies (i.e. ABRO, DARA, Met Office, DSTL and Hydrographic Office). This aligns with the MOD Annual Report and Accounts.
	
		£ million
		
			  R and D expenditure with private sector companies(19) 
		
		
			 2001–02  
			 Department 1,525 
			   
			 Trading fund agencies  
			 DSTL/DERA(20) 126.0 
			 Met office 0 
			 ABRO 0 
			 DARA 0 
			 Hydrographic office 1.0 
			   
			 2002–03  
			 Department 2,412 
			   
			 Trading fund agencies  
			 DSTL 65.2 
			 Met office 0.4 
			 ABRO 0 
			 DARA 0 
			 Hydrographic office 1.1 
		
	
	(19) Departmental expenditure figures have been rounded to the nearest £ million, sums spent by trading fund agencies have been rounded to the nearest £100,000.
	(20) On 1 July 2001 DERA was split into two organisations: the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) (about a quarter of DERAP) staying as a Trading Fund within MOD, and QinetiQ, the remainder, becoming a private (extramural) company.

Research and Development

Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what expenditure was made by (a) his Department and (b) agencies for which his Department is responsible for research and development projects by companies with headquarters (i) in the UK, (ii) in other EU member states and (iii) outside the EU in each year since 2001–02.

Adam Ingram: A breakdown of research and development expenditure in this way is not held centrally. Such information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Adult Learning Grants

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many applications for adult learning grants have been made in the North East; how many have been granted; and what the average grant has been.

Ivan Lewis: Since the start of September 2004, 538 applications for the Adult Learning Grant have been received from learners in the North East. 284 applicants have been awarded the weekly grant. 159 applications are under consideration. The average weekly payment of the grant is £29.30 per week.

Fostering

Hilton Dawson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how he plans to measure the effects of amendments to the notification scheme for private fostering set out in section 44 of the Children Act 2004.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 13 December 2004
	The new data collection exercise that was introduced from April 2004 to capture information on private fostering arrangements, together with the results from inspection against the National Minimum Standards to be introduced next year, will be significant in measuring the effects of the amendments to the private fostering notification scheme made by section 44 of the Children Act 2004.
	As agreed during the debate on the Children Bill in the House of Lords, at a suitable point during the lifetime of the registration provisions in the Act we will publish a report on the impact of the new measures, including an indication of whether in light of this we are minded to move towards a registration scheme for private foster carers.

Fostering

Hilton Dawson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many people in each local authority have notified their authority that they are acting as private foster carers.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 13 December 2004
	A new annual data collection exercise that will capture information on the number of notifications of new private fostering arrangements received during the year was introduced from April 2004. Data relating to 2004–05 will be published in late 2005.

Fostering

Hilton Dawson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many people were prosecuted for failing to notify a local authority of their intention privately to foster a child in (a) 2001–02, (b) 2002–03 and (c) 2003–04.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 13 December 2004
	This information is not collected centrally.

Learning and Skills Council

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what resources have been allocated to regional Learning and Skills Council offices for (a) start up, (b) running costs and (c) outreach work.

Ivan Lewis: This is a matter for the Learning and Skills Council. Mark Haysom, the Council's Chief Executive, will write to the hon. Member with this information and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Library.

Skills Agenda

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on the role of public sector purchasers in advancing the skills agenda.

Ivan Lewis: All good procurement and contract management should be rooted in a very clear understanding of the skills that the contractor needs to demonstrate to deliver the contract outcome we seek. To support this approach, guidance was developed by my Department in November 2003, with the assistance of the Treasury and Office of Government Commerce, to outline how Government Departments working within the scope of the procurement policy and legal framework can consider the literacy, language and numeracy skills required to deliver contracts, and how they can work with prospective and existing contractors to ensure that their staff have, or are able to develop relevant skills.
	In July this year the Adult Basic Skills Committee called on Departments to actively embrace this guidance. Many have already provided details of how it has been incorporated into their public sector procurement practices. Departments are currently in the process of preparing a report to demonstrate the actual effect this guidance has had. My Department, in conjunction with others, is looking at how this guidance may be further developed to help promote the wider skills agenda.

Skills Agenda

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what action he is taking to improve liaison between sector skills councils and the relevant awarding bodies.

Ivan Lewis: As part of the Government's Skills Strategy, the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA), the Learning and Skills Council and the Skills for Business Network are working in partnership with sectors and awarding bodies to develop a new Framework for Achievement.
	An essential component of the new Framework will be Sector Qualification Strategies, developed jointly by Sector Skills Councils and awarding bodies.
	At least eight Sector Qualification Strategies will be in place by March 2005, and all sectors will have strategies in place by March 2006.

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether he has been informed of breaches of the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers in his Department since its implementation.

Charles Clarke: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by the Minister for the Cabinet Office on 8 December 2004, Official Report, column. 578W.

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills on how many occasions between 31 March 2003 and 31 March 2004 departmental special advisers travelled (a) domestically and (b) abroad in an official capacity; what places were visited; and how much each visit cost.

Charles Clarke: There was one official visit abroad by a special adviser in this Department during the specified period, to Belgium, Germany and Poland. The cost of the trip was £743. Information for domestic visits is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	All travel by special advisers is undertaken in accordance with the guidelines set out in the Ministerial Code and the Civil Service Management Code.

Vocational Education/Qualifications

Clive Soley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans he has to expand vocational education and training for adults in Ealing and Acton.

Ivan Lewis: This is a matter for the Learning and Skills Council. Mark Haysom, the Council's Chief Executive, will write to my hon. Friend with this information and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Library.
	The Government's Skills Strategy "21st Century Skills: Realising Our Potential" (July 2003), set out its plans for increasing opportunities for adults to develop their skills. In addition, the Chancellor's Pre-Budget Report last week announced the extension of our Employer Training Pilots to all areas from 2006/07 and a New Deal for Skills to help the unemployed secure the training they need for sustainable employment.

Vocational Education/Qualifications

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what action he is taking in conjunction with the devolved administrations to harmonise vocational qualification frameworks across the UK, with particular reference to the needs of national and EU-based employers.

Ivan Lewis: The UK administrations and their regulatory authorities are working very closely together on the reform of vocational qualifications.
	Credit development is at the heart of qualifications reform, and is at different stages in different parts of the UK. As the recent Framework for Achievement consultation document shows, we are considering how best to move towards convergence on credit in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. We believe that the framework can be developed over time to articulate with the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework and facilitate credit transfer arrangements with European credit systems.
	For employers, the new framework will mean that vocational qualifications are more responsive to their needs. The framework will provide opportunities for employer training to lead to recognised achievements within it, and ensure that what people achieve is relevant to their role as an employee.

Volunteering

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  when he expects to publish a report on the results of his investment of £27 million in volunteering by students announced in 2000;
	(2)  what projects have been undertaken as a result of the £27 million investment for volunteering by students he announced in 2000; and how the cost effectiveness of that investment will be assessed.

Ivan Lewis: The projects undertaken include students volunteering in schools, prisons, hospitals or local community organisations and groups; student volunteers in cultural and sporting events end environmental projects; and student volunteers to coach young people in sport and drama. More than 30,000 people have benefited. The Higher Education Funding council for England will Produce a report in spring 2005 assessing the initiative.

WORK AND PENSIONS

New Deal for the Disabled

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 30 November 2004, Official Report, column 69W, on the New Deal for the Disabled, what plans he has for the renewal of contracts from April 2006 with those organisations that are contracted to deliver the New Deal for Disabled People.

Jane Kennedy: All current contracts for New Deal for Disabled People run until March 2006. We are currently considering the most effective way to continue this work with external organisations beyond the end of the current New Deal for Disabled People contract period.
	The Chancellor announced in his pre-Budget report on 2 December 2004 that a further £30 million will be allocated to expand the numbers who can benefit from the New Deal for Disabled People.

Pension Credit

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many pensioners took up pension credit in October in the constituency of (a) Moray, (b) Banff and Buchan, (c) Tayside North, (d) Angus and (e) Perth;
	(2)  how many pensioners took up pension credit in October in (a) the UK and (b) Scotland.

Malcolm Wicks: The numbers of pension credit recipients at the end of October in Great Britain, Scotland and the constituencies mentioned is given in the following table.
	
		Pension credit recipients—31 October 2004
		
			  Households Individuals 
		
		
			 Great Britain 2,633,550 3,199,040 
			 Scotland 274,225 328,250 
			 Moray 3,555 4,320 
			 Banff and Buchan 3,985 4,875 
			 Tayside North 4,270 5,185 
			 Angus 3,830 4,600 
			 Perth 3,635 4,305 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest five.
	2. Figures are available for 31 October 2004 as the final output of processes that were put in place to deliver special monthly reporting during the first year of the roll-out of Pension credit. As Parliament was told in the statement accompanying the last such report, data will in future be available on a quarterly basis, in line with standard departmental practice. The next report, covering data as at 31 December 2004, should be laid in the House in January 2005.
	3. Individual recipients include a small number of partners under age 60.

Pension Credit

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners his Department estimates are eligible for pension credit in (a) the UK and (b) Scotland; and how many pensioners have taken up pension credit since it was introduced in (i) the UK and (ii) Scotland.

Malcolm Wicks: We estimate that approximately 3.85 million households in Great Britain, corresponding to approximately 4.95 million individuals, and approximately 350,000 households in Scotland, corresponding to approximately 450,000 individuals, are likely to be eligible for pension credit in 2004–05. These estimates, rounded to the nearest 50,000 households or individuals, are subject to a wide margin of error and should be used as a broad indication of the likely eligible population only. The following table gives the numbers of pension credit recipients in Great Britain and Scotland at the end of October.
	
		Pension credit recipients—31 October 2004
		
			  Households Individuals 
		
		
			 Great Britain 2,633,550 3,199,040 
			 Scotland 274,225 328,250 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest five.
	2. Figures are available for 31 October 2004 as the final output of processes that were put in place to deliver special monthly reporting during the first year of the roll-out of pension credit. As Parliament was told in the statement accompanying the last such report, data will in future be available on a quarterly basis, in line with standard departmental practice. The next report, covering data as at 31 December 2004, should be laid in the House in January 2005.
	3. A pensioner household is defined as single persons aged 60 or over and couples where at least one partner is aged 60 or over. Individuals are single pensioners with eligibility and both partners in a couple with eligibility.
	4. Individual recipients include a small number of partners under age 60.

Pension Credit

John Lyons: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what the average payment of pension credit in Strathkelvin and Bearsden is;
	(2)  how many people received pension credit in Strathkelvin and Bearsden in (a) 2003 and (b) 2004.

Malcolm Wicks: Numbers of pension credit recipients in Strathkelvin and Bearsden in December 2003 and in October 2004 are given in the following table. The average award in Strathkelvin and Bearsden at the end of October was £41.72.
	
		Pension credit recipients, Strathkelvin and Bearsden
		
			  Households Individuals 
		
		
			 December 2003 2,295 2,745 
			 October 2004 2,725 3,280 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 5.
	2. Figures are available for 31 October 2004 as the final output of processes that were put in place to deliver special monthly reporting during the first year of the roll-out of pension credit. As Parliament was told in the statement accompanying the last such report, data will in future be available on a quarterly basis, in line with standard departmental practice. The next report, covering data as at 31 December 2004, should be laid in the House in January 2005.
	3. Individual recipients may include a small number of partners under age.
	4. Pension credit replaced the minimum income guarantee from 6 October 2003.

Pension Credit

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the cost of the pension credit in each year from 2006–07 to 2011–12 if (a) the guarantee element of the pension credit is increased in line with earnings in each year after 2005–06 and the savings credit threshold is increased in line with prices, (b) the guarantee element of the pensions credit and the savings credit threshold are both increased in line with prices in each year after 2005–06 and (c) the savings and guarantee credits are increased in line with earnings.

Malcolm Wicks: Estimates for expenditure on pension credit under each of the uprating scenarios laid out in (a) to (c) are provided for each financial year from 2006–07 to 2011–12 in the following table.
	
		Table 1: Estimated expenditure on pension credit from 2006–07 to 2011–12 -- £ billion
		
			  (a) (b) (c) 
		
		
			 2006–07 7.2 6.5 6.9 
			 2007–08 8.0 6.8 7.6 
			 2008–09 8.7 7.0 8.1 
			 2009–10 9.5 7.3 8.7 
			 2010–11 10.0 7.5 9.5 
			 2011–12 11.0 7.5 10.0 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures for 2006–07 to 2009–10 are in billions and rounded to the nearest £0.1 billion. Figures for 2010–11 to 2011–12 are rounded to the nearest £0.5 billion to account for the degree of uncertainty in projecting this far ahead.
	2. Overall pensioner income is assumed to rise in line with average earnings.
	Sources:
	1. Figures for 2006–07 to 2009–10 are based on the Department's medium term forecasts for pension credit. The projections are based on the Department's QSE 5 per cent. administrative data.
	2. The figures for 2010–11 to 2011–12 are based on the Departments' policy simulation model and the FRS survey 2002–03 projected forward to the appropriate policy year.

Pension Credit

David Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners are in receipt of pension credit in Telford; and if he will estimate how many are entitled to claim and have not done so.

Malcolm Wicks: Information on the number of people likely to be eligible for pension credit is not available at constituency level. However, we estimate that approximately 400,000 households in the West Midlands, corresponding to approximately 500,000 individuals (rounded to the nearest 50,000), are likely to be eligible for pension credit in 2004–05. Information on the number of pension credit recipients in the West Midlands and Telford is given in the table.
	
		Pension credit recipients—31 October 2004
		
			  Households Individuals 
		
		
			 West Midlands 271,860 375,600 
			 Telford 3,720 4,685 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest five.
	2. Individual recipients include a small number of partners under age 60.

Pension Credit

David Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many constituents of Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber have received the pension credit.

Malcolm Wicks: At 31 October 2004 there were 3,780 households, comprising 4,480 individuals, in receipt of pension credit in the Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber constituency.
	Notes
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 5. 2. Figures are available for 31 October 2004 as the final output of processes that were put in place to deliver special monthly reporting during the first year of the roll-out of pension credit. As Parliament was told in the statement accompanying the last such report, data will in future be available on a quarterly basis, in line with standard departmental practice. The next report, covering data as at 31 December 2004, should be laid in the House in January 2005. 3. Individual recipients may include a small number of partners under age 60.

Pensioners

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) male and (b) female pensioner recipients of (i) income support, (ii) the minimum income guarantee and (iii) pension credit there have been in each year since 1979.

Malcolm Wicks: The information is shown in the following three tables.
	
		Table 1: Pensioners in receipt of income support, Great Britain, 1979–98 -- Number
		
			  Total individual beneficiaries Male individual beneficiaries Female individual beneficiaries 
		
		
			 1979 2,039,000 488,000 1,551,000 
			 1980 1,974,000 466,000 1,508,000 
			 1981 2,034,000 482,000 1,553,000 
			 1982 2,089,000 501,000 1,587,000 
			 1983 1,920,000 434,000 1,486,000 
			 1984 1,944,000 442,000 1,502,000 
			 1985 n/a n/a n/a 
			 1986 1,973,000 437,000 1,536,000 
			 1987 1,988,000 450,000 1,538,000 
			 1988 2,002,000 534,000 1,468,000 
			 1989 1,843,000 464,000 1,379,000 
			 1990 1,925,000 502,000 1,423,000 
			 1991 1,788,000 448,000 1,340,000 
			 1992 1,872,000 484,000 1,388,000 
			 1993 2,048,000 552,000 1,496,000 
			 1994 2,082,000 575,000 1,507,000 
			 1995 2,067,000 584,900 1,482,100 
			 1996 2,045,100 584,300 1,460,800 
			 1997 1,985,400 565,700 1,419,700 
			 1998 1,911,800 546,500 1,365,300 
		
	
	n/a = Signifies data are unavailable.
	Notes:
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred.
	2. Totals may not sum due to rounding.
	3. Income support replaced supplementary benefit in April 1988.
	4. Up to and including 1987, pensioners are defined as claimants of pensionable age. From 1988 pensioners are defined as benefit units where either the claimant and/or partner are aged 60 or over.
	5. Unemployed claimants are included in the figures up to and including August 1996. Income support for the unemployed was replaced by income-based jobseeker's allowance in October 1996.
	6. Figures are based on sample data and are therefore subject to a degree of sampling error.
	7. All figures relate to a point in time. For 1979 the month of the enquiry was November, for 1980 to 1984 the month was December, for 1986 the month was February and for 1987 to 2004 the month was May.
	8. From 1999 income support for pensioners became the minimum income guarantee.
	
		Table 2: Minimum income guarantee recipients, Great Britain, 1999–2003 -- Number
		
			  Total individual beneficiaries Male individual beneficiaries Female individual beneficiaries 
		
		
			 May 1999 1,869,600 541,000 1,328,600 
			 November 1999 1,873,700 547,000 1,326,800 
			 November 2000 1,940,400 574,400 1,366,000 
			 November 2001 2,021,700 606,100 1,415,600 
			 November 2002 2,065,600 634,700 1,430,900 
			 October 2003 2,109,200 662,100 1,447,100 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred and totals may not sum due to rounding.
	2. Figures from May 1999—November 2002 are taken from a 5 per cent. sample and are subject to a high degree of sampling variation.
	3. Figures from October 2003 are from a 100 per cent. sample.
	4. Individual beneficiaries include claimants and partners and may contain a small number of partners aged under 60.
	5. Minimum income guarantee was introduced in April 1999.
	6. Pension credit replaced minimum income guarantee from 6 October 2003.
	
		Table 3: Pension credit recipients, Great Britain, 2003–04 -- Number
		
			 As at October Total individual beneficiaries Male individual beneficiaries Female individual beneficiaries 
		
		
			 2003 2,247,605 712,105 1,535,500 
			 2004 3,199,040 1,073,170 2,125,870 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest five.
	2. Figures for October 2003 relate to 17 October 2003. Figures for October 2004 relate to the end of the month.
	3. Individual beneficiaries include claimants and partners and may contain a small number of partners aged under 60.
	4. Pension credit replaced minimum income guarantee from 6 October 2003.

Pensioners

Stephen Hesford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many recipients of (a) the minimum income guarantee and (b) pension credit there have been in Wirral, west constituency in each year since the inception of each; and what the average value to recipients of each was in each year.

Malcolm Wicks: The information is given in the following two tables.
	
		Table 1: Minimum income guarantee recipients, Wirral West, 1999–2003
		
			  Households Individuals Average amount (£) 
		
		
			 May 1999 2,300 2,500 47.06 
			 November 1999 2,300 2,500 50.37 
			 November 2000 2,400 2,700 52.04 
			 November 2001 2,500 2,800 52.88 
			 November 2002 2,400 2,800 49.32 
			 October 2003 2,500 2,900 48.34 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures from May 1999—November 2002 are taken from a five per cent. sample and are subject to a high degree of sampling variation.
	2. The October figures relate to 3 October and are from a 100 per cent. sample.
	3. Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred.
	4. Individual recipients include claimants and partners only and may contain a small number of partners aged under 60.
	5. Minimum income guarantee was introduced in April 1999
	6. Minimum income guarantee was replaced by pension credit from 6 October 2003.
	7. Average amounts of minimum income guarantee fell in April 2002 because of the transfer of residential care and nursing homes reserved rights funding to local authorities.
	
		Table 2: Pension credit recipients, Wirral West, 2003–04
		
			 As at October Households Individuals Average amount (£) 
		
		
			 2003 2,805 3,315 44.29 
			 2004 3,825 4,600 40.63 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest five.
	2. Figures are available for 31 October 2004 as the final output of processes that were put in place to deliver special monthly reporting during the first year of the roll-out of pension credit. As Parliament was told in the statement accompanying the last such report, data will in future be available on a quarterly basis, in line with standard departmental practice. The next report, covering data as at 31 December 2004, should be laid in the House in January 2005.
	3. The October 2003 figure is at 17 October 2003. The October 2004 figure is for the end of the month.
	4. Pension credit replaced minimum income guarantee from 6 October 2003.
	5. Individual recipients include claimants and partners only and may contain a small number of partners aged under 60.
	6. Pension credit average amounts are lower than minimum income guarantee average amounts for three main reasons:
	(a) Some recipients of pension credit receive the savings element only, for which there was no equivalent in minimum income guarantee. The maximum award of the savings element is £15.51 for single pensioners and £20.22 for couples.
	(b) Funding of child allowances was transferred to the child tax credit on 6 October 2003.
	(c) Residential allowance funding was transferred to local authorities on 6 October 2003.

Unemployment (Lewisham)

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what action he has taken to reduce unemployment in the Lewisham, Deptford constituency since 2001 among (a) young people, (b) disabled people, (c) lone parents and (d) the long-term unemployed.

Jane Kennedy: As a result of a combination of economic stability and our radical labour market policies unemployment in Lewisham Deptford has reduced by 12 per cent. since 2001 and now stands at 2,949, with long-term unemployment reduced by 35 per cent. to 585.
	Our New Deal programmes administered by Jobcentre Plus have been a great success helping over 600 young people, over 600 long-term unemployed and 200 disabled people in Lewisham Deptford into work.
	Lewisham Deptford also benefits from the Government's Welfare to Work 'Action Team initiative' that provides tailored support to disadvantaged customers within the community through an outreach advisory approach.
	There have been ongoing activities specific to Lewisham Deptford to help local people into work. Local initiatives have included a Disability Jobsfair at Charlton Athletic Football ground in September 2004 and there is a weekly attendance by Deptford Disability Employment Adviser at Speedwell Mental Health Centre.
	Lone Parent Advisers and Childcare Partnership Managers offer additional help to people in Lewisham via a variety of pilots and partnerships, in particular the TryChildcare team. Recent events have been held with New Deal for Communities, Opening Doors, Inland Revenue, the Lewisham Action Team and the North Lewisham Children's Centre.

US Navy

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what representations he has received regarding the downsizing of the US Navy operations in London and the consequences on employment in London.

Jane Kennedy: No representations have been received.

Winter Fuel Payment

David Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many constituents of Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber have received the winter fuel payment.

Malcolm Wicks: For winter 2003–04 there were 17,945 constituents in Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber who received a winter fuel payment. We would expect the number to be similar for winter 2004–05.
	Notes
	1. Numbers are rounded to the nearest 5. 2. Local authorities and parliamentary constituencies are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant ONS postcode directory.
	Source
	IAD Information Centre, 100 per cent. samples.

Winter Fuel Payment

Peter Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have received winter fuel payments in (a) Burnley and (b) Lancashire in 2004.

Malcolm Wicks: For winter 2003–04 there were 16,885 people in Burnley who received a winter fuel payment and 240,640 people in Lancashire. We expect the numbers for winter 2004–05 to be similar.
	Notes
	1. Numbers are rounded to the nearest 5. 2. Local authorities and parliamentary constituencies are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant ONS postcode directory.
	Source
	IAD Information Centre, 100 per cent. samples.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Aggregates

Tim Boswell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what account is taken of the description of a special landscape area in connection with the selection of land for gravel and aggregate production; and what recent advice his Department has circulated to local authorities on this.

Keith Hill: Draft Minerals Policy Statement 1 "Planning and Minerals" (MPS1), is the most recent advice the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has sent to local planning authorities about minerals extraction and special landscape areas. It states that one of the Government's key objectives for minerals planning is to protect nationally designated areas of landscape from minerals development (that is National Parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty), other than in exceptional circumstances. It also indicates that Mineral Planning Authorities should have regard generally to the need to protect the wider undeveloped countryside and seek to minimise the impact of minerals development on its quality and character. Mineral planning authorities will have to take into account MPS1, as they prepare their development plans and consider the selection of any sites for minerals development. In respect of landscape protection, proposed policies in MPS1 are not materially different from existing policy in Minerals Planning Guidance Notes 1 and 6.

Childcare Allowances

Bob Russell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what level of childcare allowance is available for elected members serving on (a) county, (b) unitary, (c) Metropolitan boroughs and (d) borough and district local authorities.

Nick Raynsford: The level of allowance for childcare and other care of dependants is for each local authority to decide, having had regard to the recommendations of its independent remuneration panel. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does not collate information on the levels of allowance that local authorities have made available.

Departmental Expenditure

John Bercow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the cost has been of criminal damage to his Department's buildings in each of the last two years.

Phil Hope: The cost of criminal damage to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's office buildings in the last two years has been:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 2002–03 6,100 
			 2003–04 6,500 
		
	
	These costs include the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's agencies and the Government Office Network. Although the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has overall responsibility for the buildings occupied by Government Offices, they carry out functions on behalf of ten Government Departments.
	The Rent Service became an Executive Agency of the Department for Work and Pensions on 1 April 2004, but was part of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in the period in question.

Email

Francis Maude: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to introduce an automatic e-mail notification facility for all announcements and publications issued by his Department and those public bodies reporting to him.

Phil Hope: Most announcements and publications issued by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister are placed on the info41ocal website—www.info41ocal.gov.uk which provides an automatic e-mail notification facility.
	There is also a separate facility on the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's website to subscribe to an e-mail alert for the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's news releases—http://www.odpm.gov.uk/pns/newslist.cgi

Engagements

Norman Lamb: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements over the last six months; who was present at each meeting; what the (a) date and (b) location was of each meeting; what issues were discussed; and what plans he has to establish a public register of such information.

Phil Hope: Ministers meet many individuals and organisations and attend many functions relating to Government business, and as part of the process of policy development. To provide the detailed information requested would incur disproportionate cost. The daily on the record briefing by the Prime Minister's Official Spokesman regularly provides details of Minister's public engagements.

Housing and Employment Services Mobility Project

Tim Boswell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make a statement on progress in developing the Housing and Employment Services Mobility project.

Keith Hill: Good progress is being made on the development of the Housing Employment Mobility Service (HEMS). Scout Solutions Projects Ltd. (SSPL) was awarded the contract in February. The existing HOMES and LAWN mobility services have been provided by SSPL since 2 May. New services will be launched in early 2005.

Human Rights Act

John Bercow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many cases have been brought against his Department under the Human Rights Act 1998; and what the cost has been in (a) legal fees to defend cases and (b) compensation payments.

Phil Hope: The Human Rights Act has not given rise to a great deal of specific litigation; HR points are most often taken in support of other causes of action. This makes them very difficult to count separately. In addition, the subjects of the convention rights themselves are, to a very great extent, already actionable in existing domestic law.
	For these reasons it would not be possible to apportion costs and compensation payments as requested without reviewing all the cases handled by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister since its formation in 2002, which would give rise to disproportionate cost.

Local Government Finance

Karen Buck: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will rank each local authority in England by the percentage of total expenditure financed by council tax in 2003–04.

Nick Raynsford: The information has been made available in the Library of the House.
	The data are taken from the Revenue Account budget form for 2003–04.
	Total expenditure is taken to be revenue expenditure financed from revenue support grant, special and specific grants within Aggregate External Finance, non-domestic rates, police grant and general Greater London authority grant.

Ministerial Tour

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether civil servants accompanied him on his tour of the North East on 1 November.

Nick Raynsford: My right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister was accompanied by one special adviser. No other civil servants accompanied him.

Mortgages

Tom Cox: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the average proportion of household income spent on mortgages by first-time buyers buying property within the Greater London area was in the latest year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Keith Hill: First-time buyers who purchased property within the Greater London area during 2003 faced mortgage repayments equivalent to an estimated 22.6 per cent. of their income. The equivalent figure for first-time buyers for the whole of the United Kingdom was 19.9 per cent.
	Notes:
	1. The incomes of first-time buyers are as recorded on their mortgage application forms and will include single or combined incomes depending on whether they were single or joint buyers. The information is derived from mortgage completions data obtained through the Survey of Mortgage Lenders. 2. The basis for the calculation is that all mortgages applied for were repayment mortgages (as opposed to an interest-only mortgages). For buyers who actually opted for an interest-only mortgage, their repayments as a percent of their income would have been slightly lower.

North-east Referendum

John Hayes: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what European Parties Elections and Referendums Network funds were used in support of the recent referendum in the North East.

Nick Raynsford: The information requested is not held by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. Expenditure by permitted participants in national and regional referendums is a matter for the Electoral Commission.

Planning Delivery Grant

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much Planning Delivery Grant has been allocated to each local authority in each year since its creation.

Keith Hill: A table with the information requested has been made available in the Library of the House.

Planning Delivery Grant

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what criteria are used for the allocation of Planning Delivery Grant to individual local authorities in England.

Keith Hill: Officials in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister wrote to all local planning authorities in England on 18 May this year setting out the broad criteria for allocation of Planning Delivery Grant 2005–06 a copy of which is available in the Library of the House. We will shortly issue a document consulting on the detailed criteria for allocation.

Seaside and Country Homes Scheme

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  how many and what size properties were released by nominees from London boroughs to the Seaside and Country Homes Scheme in (a) 2002–03 and (b) 2003–04, broken down by local authority;
	(2)  how many applicants were on the waiting list for a nomination to a property under the Seaside and Country Homes Scheme on (a) 1 April 2003 and (b) 1 April 2004;
	(3)  what the average length of time was between an application for rehousing under the Seaside and Country Homes Scheme and nomination to a property in (a) 2002–03 and (b) 2003–04.

Keith Hill: On the average length of time taken between an application for rehousing and nomination to a Seaside and Country Home (SCH) property, the information requested is not held centrally and can only be provided at disproportionate cost.
	On SCH waiting list:
	The number of applicants that were on the waiting list for a nomination to a property under the Seaside and Country Homes Scheme on (a) 1 April 2003 and (b) 1 April 2004 was:
	(a) 499
	(b) 388
	The breakdown of the number of applicants on the waiting lists at (a) and (b) according to year of registration is available in the Library of the House. On the number of households rehoused under the Seaside and Country Homes Scheme by property size and local authority is also available in the Library of the House.

Shredding

Norman Baker: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many staff hours have been spent shredding documents in each month since January.

Phil Hope: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister on how many occasions between 31 March 2003 and 31 March 2004 departmental special advisers travelled (a) domestically and (b) abroad in an official capacity; what places were visited; and how much each visit cost.

Phil Hope: Information on the travel and accommodation for special advisers who accompanied my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister on overseas visits are included in the list of Overseas Travel by Cabinet Ministers 2003–04, copies of which are available in the Libraries of the House. In addition between 31 March 2003 and 31 March 2004 a special adviser attended an official meeting in Spain. No costs were incurred by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.
	Information on domestic visits could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	All travel by special advisers is undertaken fully in accordance with the rules set out in the ministerial code and the civil service management code, copies of which are available in the Libraries of the House.

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether departmental special advisers have attended meetings with external (a) bodies and (b) individuals, in their official capacity and without Ministers, since May 1997.

Phil Hope: Special advisers hold meetings with a wide range of external representatives in their official capacity. All such meetings are conducted in accordance with the requirements of the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers.

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether departmental special advisers have made speeches in their official capacity since May 1997.

Phil Hope: Any speeches made by special advisers in an official capacity are conducted in accordance with the code of conduct for special advisers.

Supporting People Initiative

Richard Taylor: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many staff are employed by the Supporting People initiative in (a) Worcestershire and (b) England.

Keith Hill: The Supporting People team in Worcestershire consists of 12 members of staff (11 full-time and one part-time). In England there are 1,176 full-time staff and 238 part-time staff working on the Supporting People programme across the 150 administrating authorities.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

British Energy

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many reactors owned by British Energy are out of action; what discussions she has had with British Energy on the potential impact on generating capacity; and if she will make a statement.

Mike O'Brien: The operational performance of British Energy's nuclear power stations is a matter for the company. British Energy publishes monthly output statements which include, among other things, information on which of its power stations was unavailable in that month. My officials have regular discussions with British Energy and other generators about a range of matters affecting the generating industry. The Government's concern is to seek to ensure sufficient generating capacity to meet the countries needs. Overall generating capacity for Great Britain is projected to be 21.7 per cent. above expected peak demand for this winter. In their Winter Outlook, published on 15 October, National Grid Transco stated that the then plant margin of 20.2 per cent.
	"will be sufficient to meet demands expected under average cold spell conditions."

Corporate Social Responsibility Reports

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make it her policy for companies to be required to produce annual corporate social responsibility reports in a consistent and comparable format.

Patricia Hewitt: No. The Government encourage companies to report on their corporate social responsibility impacts and 145 of the FTSE 250 now report on aspects of their environmental and/or social performance. It is for companies themselves to decide the format and content of such reports which are relevant to their business.

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when she will reply to the letter to her from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to the Managing Director of Warm Front.

Patricia Hewitt: I responded to my right hon. Friend on 7 December explaining that his letter had been transferred to the Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs for response as the issues raised fell within their responsibility.

Departmental Estate

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what her estimate is of the (a) annual cost and (b) total value of the empty properties owned by (i) her Department, (ii) agencies and (iii) other public bodies for which she has had responsibility in each of the last two years.

Patricia Hewitt: The Department's HQ estate and agencies have had no empty properties for financial years 2003–04 and 2004–05.
	The information for DTI's non-departmental public bodies is not held centrally.

Departmental Estate

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the cost of refurbishing each ministerial private office was in the last two years.

Patricia Hewitt: In 2003 the cost of undertaking internal changes and refurbishment to the ministerial offices, private offices and conference space was £65,958. There have been no works undertaken in 2004.

Departmental Files

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether it is the policy of the Department to retain for the benefit of future (a) historians and (b) applicants under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 the same (i) complete categories of files, (ii) numbers of files and (iii) representative examples of files from categories of files destroyed, as had been preserved prior to the passage of that Act.

Patricia Hewitt: The Department of Trade and Industry policy on records destruction and retention will not change as a result of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

Departmental Files

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what changes have been promulgated in each of the past five years to the guidelines or other criteria for the retention or destruction of departmental files.

Patricia Hewitt: There have been no changes to the criteria for selecting Departmental files for retention or destruction in the last five years.

Departmental Five Year Programme

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the cost was of printing her Department's Five Year Programme published on 17 November.

Patricia Hewitt: The printing cost for the DTI Five Year Programme was £6,715.

EU Constitution

Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether Article III-6 of the proposed EU Constitution will create a legal basis for the application of EU regulation to services of general interest.

Mike O'Brien: holding answer 7 December 2004
	Article III-122 (formerly Article III-6) of the proposed Constitutional Treaty would only apply to services of general economic interest; it does not apply to non-economic services.

Exeter University

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  what discussions she has had with ministerial colleagues in the Treasury about the proposed closure by Exeter university of its undergraduate chemistry provision;
	(2)  when the governing body of the university of Exeter informed her Department about the proposed closure of its undergraduate chemistry provision;
	(3)  when her Department was informed about the proposed closure by Exeter university of its undergraduate chemistry provision;
	(4)  what representations she has had from (a) the Royal Society of Chemistry, (b) the South West Regional Development Agency, (c) companies operating in the South West and (d) others concerning the proposed closure of undergraduate chemistry provision at Exeter university; and if she will make a statement;
	(5)  what discussions she has had with the Higher Education Funding Council about the proposed closure of undergraduate chemistry provision at Exeter university;
	(6)  if she will make a statement on the proposed closure by Exeter university of its undergraduate chemistry provision.

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  what assessment she has made of the impact of the proposed closure by Exeter university of its undergraduate chemistry provision on the Government's 10-year Investment Framework for Science and Innovation;
	(2)  if she will make a statement on the proposed closure by Exeter university of its undergraduate chemistry provision;
	(3)  what discussions she has had with the Higher Education Funding Council about the proposed closure of undergraduate chemistry provision at Exeter university;
	(4)  what representations she has had from (a) the Royal Society of Chemistry, (b) the South West Regional Development Agency, (c) companies operating in the south west and (d) others concerning the proposed closure of undergraduate chemistry provision at Exeter university; and if she will make a statement;
	(5)  what action she proposes to take to prevent the closure of further undergraduate chemistry provision in universities;
	(6)  whether her Department has received reports of other university chemistry departments experiencing financial difficulty;
	(7)  if she will hold discussions with her ministerial colleagues in the Department for Education and Skills to seek to prevent the proposed closure by Exeter university of its undergraduate chemistry provision.

Patricia Hewitt: Officials in the Department were informed of the proposed closure of Exeter's undergraduate chemistry provision in early November by officials at the Department for Education and Skills (DfES). DfES was advised informally by the Vice-Chancellor of the proposed closure in early November, prior to the formal announcement on 22 November.
	My noble Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Science and Innovation, has discussed this issue with both the Higher Education Minister at the Department for Education and Skills and the Chief Executive of the Higher Education Funding Council for England.
	Both my noble Friend and I have received representations from the Royal Society of Chemistry. Lord Sainsbury met with the Royal Society of Chemistry on 8 December. A small number of letters from other HE institutions, students, staff, and individuals have also been received. There have been no representations from either business or the South West Regional Development Agency.
	Higher education institutions (HEIs) are autonomous organisations and as such are responsible for their own academic direction and strategic use of funds. The decision to close undergraduate chemistry provision is therefore a matter for Exeter university alone. I understand that Exeter university is working very closely with students to ensure that all their individual needs are met. The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) will continue to monitor the situation closely.
	The Department has not received any reports of other university chemistry departments that may be experiencing financial difficulty.
	The quality of chemistry research in English universities has increased significantly. 50 per cent. of departments were rated 5 or 5* in the 2001 Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) compared with only 20 per cent. in 1996. However, recognising concerns about future capacity to teach certain key disciplines, on 1 December the Secretary of State for the Department for Education and Skills wrote to HEFCE requesting advice on higher education subjects or courses of national strategic importance, including chemistry, where intervention might be appropriate to strengthen or secure them. HEFCE will be entering into a strategic dialogue with universities, colleges, employers and other partners to consider this matter.
	Science and innovation is one of my Department's key priorities: we will therefore continue to work closely with DfES, the Funding Councils and others to provide a robust, world-class research base, and delivering the Government's vision for science and innovation set out in the Science and Innovation Investment Framework 2004–2014.
	Our Departments and the Higher Education Funding Council for England will continue to work closely together on this issue.

External Consultants

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the total cost to her Department was of the use of external consultants in each of the last two years.

Patricia Hewitt: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 18 May 2004, Official Report, column 892W.

LNG Plant (Nigeria)

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what information the Export Credits Guarantee Department has sought from MW Kellogg and Kellogg, Brown and Root with regard to the bribery allegations and investigations taking place in connection with the LNG plant at Bonny Island in Nigeria.

Douglas Alexander: Given ECGD has no investigatory powers, however ECGD has sought to obtain clarification from the companies on the role and appointment of the TSKJ consortium's agent, the payment of commissions, and to what extent the companies had been in contact with the French and US investigations.
	Before underwriting the loan, ECGD obtained written warranties from MW Kellogg and Bonny Project Management Company that they had not and would not engage in any corrupt activity in connection with their contracts.

Postgraduate Study

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which research councils allow students from other EU countries to accept studentships for postgraduate study in British universities.

Patricia Hewitt: All those research councils which award studentships for postgraduate study allow students from other EU countries to accept studentships. Eligibility rules do not, however, allow a maintenance award in relation to such studentships to be paid unless the student has a relevant connection to the UK.

Public Bodies

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many people are employed by the (a) Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, (b) Council for the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils, (c) Economic and Social Research Council, (d) Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, (e) National Research Development Corporation, (f) Natural Environment Research Council and (g) Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council; what the running cost of each body was in the last year for which figures are available; and if she will make a statement on the future of each body.

Patricia Hewitt: The number of people employed by the Research Councils and their administration costs for FY2003–04 are:
	
		
			   Number employed Administration costs 2003–04 (£ million) 
		
		
			 BBSRC 3,171 8.0 
			 CCLRC 1,822 8.6 
			 ESRC 1,06 4.7 
			 EPSRC 304 19.9 
			 MRC 3,542 14.5 
			 NERC 2,599 3.9 
			 PPARC 286 9.1 
		
	
	Research Councils are currently developing a common definition of administration costs and therefore the figures stated are provisional on this work being completed.
	The National Research Development Corporation ceased functioning several years ago.
	The Government have, in successive Spending Review settlements, affirmed the importance it attaches to science, and to the role of the Research Councils. The Government issued in July 2004 its Science and Innovation Investment Framework 2004–14, a copy of which is in the Library of the House, and which affirms the Government's commitment to increasing science spending over the longer term.

Rogue Traders

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps she will take to ensure that the activities of legitimate companies are not damaged by Government proposals to ban doorstep selling as a means of dealing with rogue traders.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The recent public consultation has sought views from stakeholders on a series of possible options to improve consumer protection. The consultation did not put forward the option of an outright ban on doorstep selling but invited views on a ban on cold calling to offer property services, 'with possible necessary exceptions'. The purpose of exceptions would be to avoid constraining legitimate traders.

Shareholder Executive

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list directors of the Shareholder Executive, broken down by (a) appointing Department and (b) date of appointment; and what other (i) corporate and (ii) governmental positions each holds.

Patricia Hewitt: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 28 October 2004, Official Report, column 1150W.

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on how many occasions between 31 March 2003 and 31 March 2004 departmental special advisers travelled (a) domestically and (b) abroad in an official capacity; what places were visited; and how much each visit cost.

Patricia Hewitt: Between 31 March 2003 and 31 March 2004, special advisers in the Department of Trade and Industry have travelled abroad on six occasions, at an average cost of £3,012 per trip, visiting Honduras and Cancun, Iraq, and Brussels on official business.
	Information relating to domestic travel undertaken by special advisers in the same period is not held centrally and cannot be provided without incurring disproportionate costs.
	All travel by special advisers is undertaken fully in accordance with the rules set out in the "Ministerial Code and the Civil Service Management Code", copies of which are available in the Libraries of the House.

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether departmental special advisers have attended meetings with external (a) bodies and (b) individuals, in their official capacity and without Ministers, since May 1997.

Patricia Hewitt: Special advisers hold meetings with a wide range of external representatives in their official capacity. All such meetings are conducted in accordance with the requirements of the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers.

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many complaints were made by departmental civil servants regarding the conduct of special advisers between 31 March 2003 and 31 March 2004.

Patricia Hewitt: There were no complaints made by DTI civil servants regarding the conduct of special advisers between 31 March 2003 and 31 March 2004.

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether departmental special advisers have made speeches in their official capacity since May 1997.

Patricia Hewitt: Any speeches made by special advisers in an official capacity are conducted in line with the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Iran

David Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Government of Iran regarding Hamas and Hezbollah.

Jack Straw: Yesterday, together with my French and German colleagues and Javier Solana, we met Dr. Hassan Rouhani, Secretary General of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, as the first step towards the implementation of the Paris Agreement on nuclear issues. At a separate bilateral meeting I raised with Dr. Rouhani our concern about support for Hamas and Hizboullah.
	We are seriously concerned at the material and political support which groups undermining peace in the Middle East through violence draw from inside Iran. The EU has made clear that its relations with Iran can move forward only if Iran takes action to address the EU's political concerns, including Iran's approach to the Middle East Peace Process and terrorism.

France

Joyce Quin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on UK bilateral diplomatic relations with France.

Denis MacShane: Last month's UK-French Summit highlighted the strength of our bilateral relationship. It followed a year of celebrations marking the Entente Cordiale centenary. We agreed to continue working together, to deliver shared priorities on Africa and Climate Change, during the UK's G8 and EU Presidencies next year.

Palestine

John MacDougall: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the measures the new leadership of the Palestinian Authority is taking to prevent terror attacks being launched against Israel.

Jack Straw: The new leadership of the Palestinian Authority has said that it will pursue security reform as a priority. We have long called for this. The UK is working with the Palestinian Authority to improve its operational capacity to provide better security for Palestinians and to prevent attacks on Israel.

Sudan

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the situation in Darfur.

Chris Mullin: The situation in Darfur continues to be of grave concern, with the security and consequently the humanitarian situation deteriorating.. We continue to press the parties to implement the Humanitarian and Security Protocols signed at Abuja on 9 November. The UK is a key supporter of the expanding Africa Union monitoring mission and we are the second largest bilateral donor to Darfur, having committed over £62 million in humanitarian assistance since September 2003.

Terrorism

Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the level of threat to UK embassies posed by terrorist cells abroad.

Bill Rammell: The level of terrorist threat to UK missions overseas is high. We take the security of our staff extremely seriously. Security arrangements for all our Posts are regularly reviewed.
	Following the attack on the US Consulate General, the FCO Overseas Security Adviser visited Saudi Arabia last week to review the security arrangements of our Posts and to offer his advice to the Ambassador and his staff.

Bangladesh

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the security situation in Bangladesh.

Douglas Alexander: We are concerned about the deteriorating security situation, including as a result of recent politically motivated violence, in Bangladesh. We have raised our concerns both with the Bangladeshi government, and with leaders of the opposition. The general law and order situation does not appear to be improving, and the lack of clear progress of investigations into high profile attacks on political leaders is also unsatisfactory. I intend to raise our concerns when I visit Bangladesh next week.

South Caucasus Parliamentary Initiative

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the South Caucasus Parliamentary Initiative.

Denis MacShane: I believe the South Caucasus Parliamentary Initiative (SCPI) has been a successful confidence-building project, bringing together parliamentarians from Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. A number of productive meetings and conferences have been held, including the first meeting of these three countries' parliamentarians at a Plenary Assembly in Scotland in 2003. SCPI offers a positive example of a regional initiative that could be useful to build on as part of the European Neighbourhood Policy process.

Middle East

Martin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department is taking to achieve greater stability in the middle east.

Bill Rammell: My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister, with President Bush, set out a number of steps to help inject new momentum into the middle east peace process. These steps should lead through Palestinian presidential elections, and Israel's disengagement plan, to negotiations on a final settlement in the context of the Roadmap. We are taking these forward urgently, including through my recent visit, support to Palestinian elections and planning for Israeli disengagement.

Middle East

Ernie Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the middle east peace process.

Bill Rammell: We have an opportunity to make progress on the middle east peace process. Several factors contribute to this: Israel's disengagement plan, elections in the Palestinian authority, and President Bush's commitment to use America's political capital to achieve progress. The middle east peace process is one of our highest foreign policy priorities. We will work with the parties and our international partners to seize this opportunity for progress.

Middle East

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the route change to the Israeli Security Wall recently approved by the Israeli Defence Minister.

Bill Rammell: As my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary made clear to the Israeli Foreign Minister, Silvan Shalom, on his recent visit to Israel, we consider unlawful the construction of the barrier on occupied land, with the destruction of property and hardship that it entails. We regard as positive any change that brings the barrier closer to the Green Line and which reduces its impact on Palestinian civilians.

Middle East

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has made of the effect that the re-routing of the Security Wall in the West Bank will have on Israeli's security.

Bill Rammell: We have not made any assessment of the effect that the re-routing of the barrier in the West Bank will have on Israel's security. This is for the Israeli authorities to do.

Afghanistan

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the Department's strategy is for reducing the supply of opium from Afghanistan.

Bill Rammell: The UK, as lead nation, is committed to supporting the Afghan Government in the implementation of their comprehensive National Drug Control Strategy. I refer my hon. Friend to the written statement I made on 29 November 2004, Official Report, columns 17–18WS on Afghanistan: Counter Narcotics .
	We are working with the Afghan Government and others to increase activity in all areas of that strategy over the coming year. As well as co-ordinating the activity of international partners, we are providing substantial financial and practical support—spending more than £100 million over three years.
	In addition, the UK works closely with Afghanistan's neighbours, including providing assistance, to help their efforts to counter the flow of opiates from Afghanistan.

Burma

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations have been made by the Government to the Government of Burma to release (a) all political prisoners in Burma and (b) Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest; and if he will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: The UK has repeatedly pressed for the release of all political prisoners in Burma and the immediate release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest, most recently when I met the Burmese Ambassador on 29 November. Aung San Suu Kyi's continued detention is completely unjustified and unacceptable both to the people of Burma and the international community. All political prisoners in Burma should be released immediately so that they can play their part in promoting national reconciliation.

Burma

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the reports that the detention of Aung San Suu Kyi has been extended by the newly appointed Prime Minister of Burma, General Soe Win.

Douglas Alexander: I am deeply concerned that the Burmese military Government appears to have formally extended Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's house arrest for another year. Her continued detention is completely unjustified and unacceptable. Aung San Suu Kyi has a key role to play in national reconciliation in Burma and I have urged her immediate release.

Burma

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Burma to ask for the release of the campaigner, Win Tin.

Douglas Alexander: I met the Burmese ambassador on 29 November and called for the release of all political prisoners in Burma. I also called for the release of all political prisoners in my press statement of 30 November. A copy of the statement is available on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website: www.fco.gov.uk/policy/news/press-releases.

Burma

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received about the Government of Burma's decision to release more than 9,000 prisoners; and what assessment he has made of reports of the numbers of those released that were political detainees.

Douglas Alexander: None.
	It is disappointing that only about 45 political prisoners were included in the release of more than 9,000 prisoners. This is not enough. Over 1300 political prisoners remain in Burmese jails. The Government have repeatedly urged the release of all political prisoners in the country.

Burma

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Burma about the need to (a) respect human rights and (b) uphold their obligations under the (i) Convention of the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and (ii) Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Douglas Alexander: I met the Burmese ambassador on 29 November and urged the need to respect fully human rights in Burma.
	Burma is a signatory to the Convention on the Elimination on all forms of discrimination against women and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. However, compliance remains limited. The UN General Assembly and the UN Commission on Human Rights have passed successive resolutions, co-sponsored by the UK, condemning human rights violations in Burma.

Burma

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs for what reason Burmese state-owned enterprises with particular reference to Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise have not been included within the sanctions comprised by Annex II of the Council Common Position on Burma 2004/730/CFSP and Annex IV of Council Regulation (EC) 798/2004.

Douglas Alexander: I refer the hon. Member to the reply my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary gave to the right hon. and learned Member for Devizes (Mr. Ancram) on 17 November 2004, Official Report, column 1546W.

Burma

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with representatives of the Association of South East Asian Nations regarding the role that organisation should play in the improvement of ethnic equality in Burma.

Douglas Alexander: I met ambassadors from the Association of South East Nations (ASEAN) on 29 November and urged the need for political reform in Burma, full respect for human rights and the need for all groups in Burma, including ethnic nationalities, to play a full part in national reconciliation.

Burma

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps are being taken by his Department to press for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi from prison in Burma.

Douglas Alexander: The UK has repeatedly pressed for the immediate release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, most recently when I met the Burmese ambassador on 29 November. Her continued detention under house arrest is unacceptable.
	The UK works closely with its EU and international partners, as well as through the UN and the International Labour Organisation, to press for political and wider reform in Burma, the release of Aung San Suu Kyi, and the release of all political prisoners.

Burma

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the roadmap to democracy in Burma put forward by the Government of Thailand.

Douglas Alexander: The UK welcomes all efforts to promote reconciliation in Burma. We support the Thai Government's engagement and effort on Burma, including the Bangkok Process meeting held in December 2003.
	The Burmese State Peace and Development Council roadmap to build a modern, developed democratic nation was set out in August 2003. The UK remains committed to helping Burma achieve national reconciliation and we will respond positively to tangible progress. However, it is essential that the road map is an inclusive and transparent process, involving all political parties and ethnic groups in Burma, if it is to be credible.

Burma

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what action the Government are taking through (a) the European Union and (b) the United Nations to improve the political situation in Burma.

Douglas Alexander: The UK works closely with its EU and UN partners to promote political reform and full respect for human rights in Burma. On 11 October the EU agreed to strengthen further restrictive measures in its Common Position on Burma. The new measures include the widening of the visa ban to serving military officers of the rank Brigadier General and above, and their families, and a prohibition on EU registered companies or organisations from making loans or credits available to, and on acquiring or extending a participation in, named Burmese state owned enterprises.
	This was in response to the continued detention of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the continuing restrictions on the National league for Democracy, and the failure to allow a genuine open debate in the National Convention.
	The UK fully supports all efforts by the UN to promote reconciliation in Burma. We played a key role in drafting this year's UN General Assembly resolution on human rights in Burma, due to be adopted later this month.

Child Pornography

Brian White: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs with which countries he has had discussions to request the removal of child pornography websites; and how many such requests have been agreed.

Bill Rammell: No such requests have been made by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Where investigation by a UK law enforcement agency identifies a child abuse image being hosted in another jurisdiction, it will seek to notify the appropriate authority in that country of its presence so that they can seek its removal and take further appropriate action. similar process is also undertaken by the Internet Watch Foundation, the UK internet hotline for reporting child abuse images. Figures for the number of instances in which such requests have been made to other jurisdictions by UK law enforcement agencies are not available.
	We are working with our G8 partners on the development and implementation of a strategy, including projects, to improve the exchange of information to combat on-line child abuse. This work includes outreach to non-G8 partners.
	Since 2002, in conjunction with the National Hi-Tech Crime Unit, we have provided law enforcement agencies in 14 countries with specialised software, computers and training to detect paedophiles using internet chat rooms, and to target organised criminals who produce child pornography. In March, we co-sponsored with the National Crime Squad an international conference on the subject which was attended by 81 participants from 31 countries.

Colombia

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Colombian authorities on recent releases of prisoners accused of being guerrillas; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: The Colombian Government alerted our Ambassador in Bogota to the decision to release 23 imprisoned left-wing (FARC) guerrillas in early December. He was advised that none of the group had been convicted of major crimes. We commend the Colombian Government for this unilateral goodwill gesture. We hope that it leads in turn to the opening of negotiations on a humanitarian exchange between the Colombian Government and the FARC, and indeed that it encourages the FARC to release the hostages it is holding. We have long maintained that the only viable solution to the armed conflict that has caused huge suffering in Colombia for over 40 years is through a negotiated settlement. We are working with the Colombian Government and other partners, including the EU, UN and civil society, to achieve this aim.

Departmental Files

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many departmental files have been destroyed in each of the past five years.

Jack Straw: It is not possible to give accurate figures for the number of Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) files destroyed in each of the past five years because the FCO records destruction in terms of linear feet not individual files. The footage figures for the last five years of records kept and destroyed are as follows:
	
		
			  Destroyed (ft) Kept (ft) Percentage destroyed 
		
		
			 2000 877 689 56 
			 2001 887 568 61 
			 2002 815 615 57 
			 2003 900 678 57 
			 2004 884 614 59 
		
	
	It is not possible to calculate with any certainty from the available data the number of files destroyed. As a rough guide only, the 884 feet destroyed in 2004 are estimated to be in the region of 10,000 files. All figures relate to FCO files for 1970–1974 which have been reviewed for preservation or destruction at the 30 year-point in accordance with standard procedures.

Detention Centres (United States of America)

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the legal framework for dealing with the detainees at Guantanamo Bay and other United States detention centres, with particular reference to the detention of British citizens at Guantanamo Bay.

Chris Mullin: Legal proceedings against the British detainees designated for trial by Military Commission were suspended at our request in July 2003. They remain suspended.
	We welcome the Supreme Court's June ruling that the detainees have the right to challenge the legality of their detention.
	The British Government's position is that, in the absence of a fair trial consistent with international standards, the British detainees should be returned to the UK.

Embassy/Consulate Assistance

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will introduce an accreditation scheme for solicitors whose details are given to British citizens by British embassies or consulates.

Chris Mullin: No. Consular staff are not legally qualified to make such judgements.

EU Foreign Service

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on preparations being made within (a) the European Commission and (b) the UK Civil Service for the establishment of an EU foreign service as set out in the European Constitution; how many employees he expects will be required; at what estimated cost; and what measures are being taken to encourage recruitment of UK personnel (i) via the Commission and (ii) direct from Government Departments.

Denis MacShane: Member states meeting in the Intergovernmental Conference agreed that, as soon as the Treaty was signed, the High Representative/Secretary General, the Commission and member states should begin preparatory work on the European External Action Service. This Service would only be established on the entry into force of the Constitutional Treaty.
	With a view to the start of such preparatory work, the Government have, as have other member states and the EU Institutions, been considering how best to take this work forward. Such considerations are at a very early stage, and no decisions, including on size of the proposed Action Service, staffing, costs or recruitment have been taken.
	The Commission personnel for the new service are expected to be drawn from existing relevant Commission departments. But the Government are actively looking at how we can ensure a high level of UK representation in the service as member state secondees.

EU Intelligence Sharing and Co-ordination Service

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on his policy on the establishment of a joint EU intelligence sharing and co-ordination service.

Denis MacShane: The Government would not support the establishment of an EU intelligence sharing and co-ordination service. Any sharing of intelligence between member states is carried out bilaterally between the countries concerned and not under the auspices of the EU. The Government does, however, support the activities of the EU's Situation Centre which was set up in 2002 to produce analyses and risk assessments to help member states formulate the common foreign and security policy. The Situation Centre is not a forum for intelligence exchange or intelligence co-ordination between member states. The Situation Centre's common assessments are based on inputs from member states.

Iraq

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what sources the Government use to calculate the total number of people killed in Iraq since 20 March 2003; and what the current total is.

Jack Straw: I refer the hon. Member to my written statement of 17 November. There are a variety of estimates available for the number of Iraqi casualties. None of these are wholly reliable or comprehensive. But most reliable figures available come from the Iraqi Ministry of Health, which has been collating information from some 180 hospitals since April 2004. the Iraqi Ministry of Health's figures show that between 5 April and 5 October 3,853 civilians were killed.

Islah

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with (a) the Government of the United Arab Emirates and (b) the Government of Saudi Arabia on the operation of Islah in the UK.

Bill Rammell: The United Arab Emirates and Saudi governments have raised with us their concerns over certain Islamic groups operating in the UK. We take these concerns very seriously.

Kashmir

Peter Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with representatives of the Governments of (a) Pakistan and (b) India regarding talks about Kashmir.

Douglas Alexander: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary discussed Kashmir with his Indian and Pakistani counterparts during their leaders' recent visits to the UK. The Prime Minister also spoke with President Musharraf and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. They conveyed the UK's full support for the ongoing composite dialogue between India and Pakistan and urged both countries to seek a lasting resolution to the issue of Kashmir, which takes into account the wishes of the Kashmiri people.

Jamaica

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will undertake a study of the security implications for Jamaica of a sudden reduction in the price paid by the European Commission for sugar from African, Caribbean and Pacific producers.

Bill Rammell: There are no plans to implement such a study. However, we are keenly aware of the potential impact of the EU sugar regime on Jamaica and other African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries. That is why we support the EU Commission's work to produce a credible and properly funded action plan to help mitigate negative consequences. To assist the Commission in this, the Department for International Development has commissioned from the Overseas Development Institute a report entitled "Forthcoming changes in EU sugar/banana markets: a menu of options for an effective EU transitional assistance package". This report should help those countries affected by reform to determine their priorities for a transitional package.
	In order to address particular security concerns in the region, I visited Jamaica in October to adopt the UK/Caribbean Regional Security Cooperation Plan. The purpose of the plan is to assist Jamaica and other countries in the region, to implement reforms to their security sectors in order to be better able to respond to the growing challenges posed by increased criminality and drug trafficking.

Jamaica

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions have taken place with the Jamaican Government on the security implications for Jamaica of a sudden reduction in the price paid by the European Union for sugar from African, Caribbean and Pacific producers.

Bill Rammell: In recognition of the impact that reform of the-EU sugar regime will have on African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) sugar producers, the European Commission has undertaken to initiate dialogue with the affected ACP countries, including Jamaica, on the basis of an action plan. This will be used to define appropriate accompanying measures. These are to include financial assistance and help with diversification where restructuring and improvements in competitiveness in the sugar sector are not sustainable. .
	The UK and Jamaica have discussed the impact of EU sugar reform on Jamaica, including the security implications, at a high level. My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for International Development (Mr. Gareth Thomas) and I have visited Jamaica in the past two months and discussed sugar reform. In addition, two Jamaican Ministers and the chair of Jamaica's Sugar Industries Board raised concerns about the implications of EU sugar reform during discussions at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for International Development in November 2004.

Nigeria

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of whether the previous Nigerian regime's use of financial instruments in the City of London was in accordance with international money-laundering conventions.

Bill Rammell: Investment in the City of London by the previous Nigerian regime was the subject of a report published by the Financial Services Authority in 2001. The report followed a three-month investigation, which established that 23 banks had accounts linked to either General Abacha, his family members or close associates. Of these, 15 banks were found to have significant control weaknesses. Eight of the banks had corrected these weaknesses after the accounts were opened and seven were ordered to take action to rectify control weaknesses.
	Earlier this year, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office contributed to the provision of technical assistance to the financial authorities in Nigeria in the areas of anti-money laundering and related financial crime. We have also recently agreed to participate in a large assistance programme to strengthen the Nigerian Government's anti-corruption capacity.

Pakistan

Andy King: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Pakistan concerning the deaths in police custody of (a) Nasir Masih and (b) Samuel Masih.

Douglas Alexander: The British Government takes a serious view of all violent incidents involving persecution and of all other forms of religious intolerance and discrimination in Pakistan.
	We believe that collective action through the European Union (EU) is the most effective way of tackling these issues. The last EU demarche to the Pakistani Government which expressed our concerns on Human Rights was in May this year. The case of Samuel Masih specifically was raised in this demarche.
	More recently our High Commission in Islamabad has contacted the Public Safety Commission where the incident involving Nasir Masih took place. An inquiry is taking place into this case and local officials have undertaken to keep our High Commission informed of developments and to ensure that, subject to inquiry findings, appropriate action is taken against the police involved.

Pakistan

Andy King: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Pakistan concerning rapes and assaults committed upon minority women and girls in Pakistan, with particular reference to the Christian girls named Neha and Sharee Komal assaulted in April and May respectively.

Douglas Alexander: Although we have not so far made specific representations to the Pakistani Government on the deeply concerning cases of Neha and Sharee Komal, the Pakistani authorities are aware that we closely monitor all cases of violent incidents which involve the persecution of Christians and other religious minorities in Pakistan.
	We have raised our concerns on these issues with the Pakistani authorities, along with EU colleagues, on a number of occasions, most recently in May this year.

Rockall Continental Shelf

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made in resolving the Rockall continental shelf dispute with Denmark and Iceland.

Denis MacShane: We continue to try and reach agreement with Iceland, Ireland, and Denmark (who represent the Faroes) about a division of the continental shelf in the Northeast Atlantic in the area known as the Hatton-Rockall Plateau. The most recent technical and legal exchange of information between the four states took place in November in London. A follow up meeting is scheduled to take place in the Faroe Islands in May 2005.

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether departmental special advisers have made speeches in their official capacity since May 1997.

Jack Straw: No, if by "speeches" the hon. Member means ones given in a public forum. Advisers in my Department make plenty of oral contributions in meetings, including ones organised by external bodies and abroad.

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether departmental special advisers have been responsible for authorising instances of departmental spending since May 1997.

Jack Straw: No.

Sri Lanka

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government are making to encourage the peace process in Sri Lanka; and if he will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Hendon (Mr. Dismore) on 16 November 2004, Official Report, column 1339W.

Thailand

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions his Department has held with the Government of Thailand on improving the human rights record of the Government of Burma before it hosts the 2006 ASEAN Summit.

Douglas Alexander: I met the Thai Ambassador on 29 November with his colleagues from other ASEAN countries, and urged the need for human rights progress in Burma before 2006. Our Ambassador to Thailand called on the Thai Foreign Minister on 11 November and discussed the need for urgent reform in Burma.

Travel Advice

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what advice the Foreign and Commonwealth Office gives to British travellers abroad on health care and travel insurance.

Chris Mullin: Through its website, the FCO encourages all British nationals to ensure that they have adequate travel insurance and have taken the appropriate medical precautions. In addition, the FCO's travel advice notices provide specific health information for 217 countries or territories and link directly to the Department of Health website. Health and travel insurance issues are also included in the 'Know Before You Go' campaign consular awareness literature. Our network of 185 campaign partners help distribute this information to the public.

Turkey

John Lyons: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations to Turkey to abolish the use of passports for internal travel on the island of Cyprus.

Denis MacShane: EU citizens can travel from south to north Cyprus on presentation of their ID cards. EU citizens without ID cards, and Third Country nationals, must present a passport.
	Since the partial lifting of restrictions on crossing the Green Line by the Turkish Cypriot authorities in 2003, thousands of Greek and Turkish Cypriots have been crossing the line every day. The Green Line Regulation, adopted by the European Council in April this year, has led to freedom of movement throughout the island for EU citizens. The Government welcomes these developments and continues to urge both sides to take further steps towards normalisation.

HEALTH

Care Guidelines

Alan Hurst: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidelines he had issued on the respective responsibilities of the national health service and local authority social service departments for the care of people (a) resident in a care home and (b) in their own home, who suffer from a chronic condition.

Stephen Ladyman: In September 2001, the Department issued guidance, [HSC 2001/17:LAC(2001)26] outlining the arrangements for the introduction of national health service-funded nursing care for all care home residents from 1 October 2001. This transferred the responsibility to the NHS for funding the nursing care of those care home residents paying the full costs of their care from a registered nurse and ensured parity with others who were already receiving NHS-funded nursing care in their own homes or in residential accommodation through NHS community nursing services.
	Further guidance, issued in March 2003—HSC 2003/006: LAC(2003)7—outlined the arrangements for implementing NHS funded nursing care for all care home residents from 1 April 2003.
	Through domiciliary care services, local authorities provide personal care and support to adults and older people in their own homes.
	In 2002 and 2003, the Department issued guidance on fair access to care services. This guidance provides councils with a framework for setting their eligibility criteria for adult social care.
	The personal care needs of residents of care homes and those living at home are the responsibility of the individual or the local council.
	Services are provided based on an assessment of need and local authorities have a discretionary power to charge for these services. The Department issued guidance—"Fairer Charging for Home Care and other non-residential Social Services"—to all local councils in November 2001, which seeks to ensure that, where councils do charge, this will be based on fairer, well designed charging policies.

Complementary Medicine

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will list the complementary (a) treatments and (b) therapies which are available to patients on the NHS.

Melanie Johnson: The Government expects decisions on local services to be made by frontline service providers and this also applies to complementary therapies. In making such decisions, national health service organisations take into account evidence for the safety and effectiveness of the treatment, and the availability of properly qualified and regulated practitioners.

Dentistry

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the cost to train a dentist (a) in total and (b) per year.

Rosie Winterton: Costs vary across the nine dental schools in England. At current prices, the average, including both the cost of academic and clinical training, for which the Higher Education Council for England and the Department are responsible respectively, is £160,000 or £32,000 per year over the five-year course.

Dentistry

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the annual cost to the NHS on average of one NHS dentist under the new dentistry contract.

Rosie Winterton: All dentists providing general dental services immediately before 1 October 2005, including associates, will have a right to be offered a contract with the primary care trust when the new arrangements come into effect. Dentists will be offered gross earnings (turnover) protection lasting three years based on their most recent gross earnings uplifted by any agreed doctors' and dentists' review body increase provided they maintain the same level of national health service commitment. It is premature to forecast how many dentists will opt for protection but, by way of illustration, we estimate that in 2003–04 the cost of a general dental practitioner dentist with a significant commitment to the NHS was £108,700 net of patient charge income.

Dentistry

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many dentists in Lancashire have received grants to establish and equip their practice in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested is not held centrally.

Departmental Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the European Union directives and regulations relating to his Department that have been implemented in each of the last two years, specifying (a) the title and purpose of each, (b) the cost to public funds of each and (c) the cost to businesses of each.

John Hutton: The Department has led on the implementation of four directives in the last two years, counted since 9 December 2002. The Food Standards Agency (FSA), which deals with issues of food safety, has led with the implementation of 31 directives. The number of regulations which FSA is responsible for, and have direct effect in UK law, is 18. This information, together with information about commission decisions, of which there are 18, has been placed in the Library.
	This Department does not hold cost information in the form requested and such information could be assembled only at disproportionate cost.
	The Department is required to produce regulatory impact assessments (RIAs) for proposals, including those originating in European legislation, likely to impose costs on business, charities or voluntary organisations. Copies of these are available in the Library and on the Department's website.

Departmental Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the cost of (a) new builds, (b) demolition rebuilds and (c) PFI projects in his Department for each of the last two years.

John Hutton: The capital value of national health service projects completed during 2003 and 2004 (as at 9 December 2004) is as shown in the table.
	
		£ million
		
			  2003 2004 Total 
		
		
			 Publicly funded 279 442 721 
			 Private finance initiatives (estimated) 511 89 600 
			 Total 790 531 1,321 
		
	
	Detailed information is not held centrally for schemes with a capital value below £10 million. We do not make a distinction between new build or demolition rebuild.

Diabetes

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many clinically-led diabetes networks have been established; and whether existing networks have been established at a level coterminous with secondary healthcare.

Rosie Winterton: Evidence available from strategic health authority diabetes leads suggests that there are currently 156 diabetes networks in England that are coterminous with specialist teams, the latter of whom are mostly based in secondary care.

Diabetes

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the status of the National Diabetes Support Team will be after the abolition of the NHS Modernisation Agency.

Rosie Winterton: The national diabetes support team has been established to provide assistance to national health service trusts in England to implement the national service framework for diabetes through promoting partnership working and the spreading of best practice. It has been funded up to March 2007. The national diabetes support team will not be affected by changes made to the Modernisation Agency.

Draft Mental Health Bill

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what basis he has calculated that the draft Mental Health Bill will not lead to any net increase in compulsory admissions.

Rosie Winterton: The following factors were considered when calculating the effects of the Mental Health Bill on the numbers under compulsion:
	service changes: changes in the provision and quality of services may affect the number of people whose condition is treated early enough so that they do not become so ill as to warrant the use of the Act,
	the introduction of compulsion in the community,
	the Bill's clearer tighter definition of protection of the patients from self-harm,
	the impact of the removal of the exclusions and treatability criterion,
	the new provisions relating to children in the Bill.
	As a result of consideration of these different factors, some of which could lead to reductions and some to increases in the number of people under compulsion, we reached the conclusion that the Bill would not lead to any significant change in the number of people liable to treatment under formal powers.

Food Labelling

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress is being made in relation to extending the lists of nutrients and nutrient sources permitted for use under the provisions of the Food Supplements Directive and the Food Supplements (England) Regulation.

Melanie Johnson: The Health Food Manufacturers Association and Food Standards Agency officials have met with officials from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Commission to discuss the implications of the Food Supplements Directive (FSD). It was made clear at those meetings that, before further ingredients may be added to the lists in the FSD, they must be assessed for safety through submission of a dossier and have received a positive opinion from the EFSA.
	The United Kingdom Government have nevertheless made clear that, providing an ingredient was on the market before July 2002 and a dossier has been submitted to a member state, that ingredient can remain on sale in the UK pending an opinion by EFSA following its safety evaluation.

Group B Streptococcus

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make an assessment of the protocols put in place for dealing with Group B Streptococcus in pregnant women in (a) Belgium and (b) the United States.

Stephen Ladyman: Protocols are in place for dealing with Group B Streptococcus (GBS) in pregnant women.
	Testing for carriage of GBS, although not obligatory, is almost always performed in Belgium. A doctor who did not screen a pregnant woman for this problem would be badly viewed by his or her colleagues.
	There are no uniform federal protocols in the United States of America for screening pregnant women for Group B Streptococcus. However, there are numerous guidelines on awareness.
	The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines recommend universal screening of pregnant women for GBS during the 35 to 37 weeks of pregnancy. This, however, is a recommendation only, and although the CDC makes every effort to bring these good routines to the attention of the States, there is no federal mandate that enforces compliance.
	A number of state officials have each confirmed that these issues are not regulated, but every effort is made to ensure that state healthcare providers are aware of these CDC recommendations.
	It has been estimated from studies in the USA that the current policy of antenatal screening and intravenous antibiotics during labour has reduced the number of cases of early onset GBS to rates comparable to those in the United Kingdom in the absence of screening, despite a similar rate of maternal carriage of the organism. Routine antenatal screening for GBS is not recommended in the UK at present because evidence of its effectiveness remains uncertain. The emphasis is on reducing the rates of infection through improved management of women most at risk and the UK National Screening Committee is currently taking forward a programme of work with this aim.
	Furthermore screening and the use of prophylactic antibodies carries significant risks of its own, including maternal death due to adverse reaction and increased antibiotic resistance.
	Given that the UK rate of infection without screening is of a comparable order to the US rate, with screening, introduction of screening cannot be justified in the UK until we have evidence that it would further reduce the UK rate of infection and also do more good than harm.

Health Funding

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of public funding for health per capita in (a) the West Midlands, (b) Birmingham and (c) Hodge Hill in each of the next three financial years.

Stephen Ladyman: The table shows the 2005–6 revenue funding per un-weighted head of population for primary care trusts (PCTs) in the West Midlands, which also covers Birmingham and Hodge Hill.
	The 2006–07 and 2007–08 revenue allocations have not yet been determined. Work has commenced on the next round of revenue allocations, covering the period 2006–07 to 2007–08. The next round of allocations will be announced early in the new year.
	
		West Midlands 2005–06 PCT allocations per un-weighted head of population
		
			 PCT Allocation per un-weighted head of population 
		
		
			 Burntwood, Lichfield and Tamworth 943 
			 Cannock Chase 980 
			 Coventry Teaching 1,102 
			 Dudley Beacon and Castle 1,105 
			 Dudley South 1,008 
			 East Staffordshire 966 
			 Eastern Birmingham 1,237 
			 Heart of Birmingham Teaching 1,233 
			 Herefordshire 974 
			 Newcastle-under-Lyme 1,080 
			 North Birmingham 1,075 
			 North Stoke 1,219 
			 North Warwickshire 1,012 
			 Oldbury and Smethwick 1,212 
			 Redditch and Bromsgrove 936 
			 Rowley, Regis and Tipton 1,191 
			 Rugby 1,047 
			 Shropshire County 985 
			 Solihull 1,003 
			 South Birmingham 1,179 
			 South Stoke 1,142 
			 South Warwickshire 953 
			 South Western Staffordshire 933 
			 South Worcestershire 951 
			 Staffordshire Moorlands 1,053 
			 Telford and Wrekin 966 
			 Walsall Teaching 1,147 
			 Wednesbury and West Bromwich 1,199 
			 Wolverhampton City 1,164 
			 Wyre Forest 982

Identity Cards

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the likely effects on health tourism of the introduction of identity cards;
	(2)  whether he expects the NHS to make savings following the introduction of identity cards.

John Hutton: The Department is currently investigating the benefits that identity cards would bring for the national health service and for patients. We anticipate that ID cards will make the existing eligibility checks easier for staff and more robust. We therefore expect extra income from charging chargeable patients, reduced inappropriate use of free NHS services and efficiency gains from quicker processing of patients, This will also bring benefits to patients, as they will be able to demonstrate their eligibility speedily through showing their identity card. An additional benefit would come from identifying patients who might be unconscious and confused. Our preliminary view is therefore that identity cards will deliver significant benefits to the NHS.

Identity Cards

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the identity card will replace the proposed European health card due to be introduced by 31 December 2005.

John Hutton: No. The European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), which replaces the E111, serves an entirely different function from the ID card. The EHIC is used when travelling in other European Economic Area member states to access free or reduced cost healthcare, the need for which becomes medically necessary during the trip, on the same basis as residents of that country. The EHIC will be voluntary and people who do not travel outside the United Kingdom will not need one. The ID card will have a range of domestic uses.

Long-Term Care (Greater London)

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many older people are in receipt of long-term care within the Greater London area.

Stephen Ladyman: Information about the number of places in residential care is collected, but information about the number of people in those places is not centrally available.
	In March 2001, there were 30,800 care home places in London for adults aged 65 and over. This includes places in residential care homes, general and mental nursing homes, private hospitals and clinics.
	I understand from the Chair of the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) that figures for later years were collected by the National Care Standards Commission, and now CSCI, but comparable details are not available.

Lowe Syndrome

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many children are diagnosed each year with Lowe syndrome in England;
	(2)  what treatment options are available to children born with Lowe syndrome;
	(3)  what the life expectancy is of a child born with Lowe syndrome;
	(4)  what the causes are of Lowe syndrome;
	(5)  what research he has commissioned into Lowe syndrome.

Stephen Ladyman: Data on children diagnosed with Lowe syndrome are not collected centrally.
	There is no specific treatment available for the syndrome. Treatment is available for its consequences, including neurological and behavioural abnormalities and renal tubular dysfunction.
	Life expectancy varies with the severity of the condition in individuals and the success of symptomatic treatment. Patients have lived into adulthood.
	Lowe syndrome is a rare, inheritable, progressive, metabolic disease caused by a single defective gene on the X chromosome of the child's mother.
	The Department has not commissioned research into Lowe syndrome. The main agency through which the government supports medical and clinical research is the Medical Research Council (MRC), which always welcomes high quality applications for research into any aspect of human health. These are judged in open competition with other demands for funding. Awards are made according to their scientific quality and importance to human health. Further details are available on the MRC website at www.mrc.ac.uk.

Mental Health

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what working arrangements Buckinghamshire Mental Health Trust has in place with other mental health trusts;
	(2)  whether plans have been made by Buckinghamshire Mental Health Trust to merge with Oxfordshire Mental Health Trust; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what discussions have taken place about joint working between representatives of Buckinghamshire Mental Health Trust and Oxfordshire Mental Health Trust.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 13 December 2004
	Within our policy of "Shifting the Balance of Power", supported by other national policy documents, primary care trusts, in conjunction with their strategic health authorities and other stakeholders, are responsible for assessing local health needs, and planning services accordingly.
	I am informed by the local national health service that there are currently no plans to merge Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire mental health trusts. The two organisations continue to operate as separate bodies with their own boards and chairs. Federal management arrangements are now in place with a joint chief executive and a number of shared directorial roles, including the director of finance. These roles will enable a good degree of cross-organisational working and ensure that the experience of the Oxfordshire trust team is employed to improve the performance and services of Buckinghamshire Mental Health Trust.
	Thames Valley SHA is about to commence work with the chief executives of the mental health trusts across Thames Valley to examine in more detail the ways in which they can work together to ensure critical mass for some specialist and forensic services, and to discuss future direction for services, but for the moment no organisational change is planned.

Mental Health

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, 
	(1)  what assessment (a) the Buckinghamshire Mental Health Trust and (b) Wycombe Primary Care Trust have made of (i) the demand and (ii) the need for services by people with mental health problems in Wycombe constituency;
	(2)  what assessment the (a) Buckinghamshire Mental Health Trust and (b) Wycombe Primary Care Trust have made of (i) the demand and (ii) the need for respite care by (A) service users and (B) carers in Wycombe constituency.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 13 December 2004
	Within our policy of Shifting the Balance of Power, supported by other national policy documents, primary care trusts, in conjunction with their strategic health authorities and other stakeholders, are responsible for assessing local health needs, and planning services accordingly.
	I am informed by the local national health service that Buckinghamshire Mental Health Trust has, like all other mental health provider organisation in the NHS, been working extremely hard on the modernisation agenda in the NHS as laid out in the NHS plan and the national service framework for mental health services for adults of working age.

Mental Health

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment has been made of specific provision for children and young people from black and ethnic minorities with mental health problems.

Stephen Ladyman: "Delivering Race Equality in Mental Health Care", which will be published very shortly, includes an assessment of the needs of children and young people from black and minority ethnic communities with mental health problems, and actions to address them. This work will be carried out by the National Institute for Mental Health in England and the national child adolescent mental health service support service.

National Director for Mental Health

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what priorities he has set for the National Director for Mental Health, with particular reference to the implementation of patient choice.

Rosie Winterton: No specific priorities in relation to patient choice have been set for the national director for mental health. However, he has been involved in overseeing the work of the choice steering group, which has been established under the auspices of the National Institute for Mental Health in England, to inform the development of choice policy in mental health.

NHS Expenditure

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what NHS expenditure (a) in total and (b) per person on (i) children aged under five, (ii) children aged five to 18, (iii) men aged 18 to 60, (iv) women aged 18 to 60, (v) women aged over 60 and (vi) men aged over 60 years, or on whatever other basis of gender and age is available, was in the last year for which figures are available.

John Hutton: Information on the split of total national health service expenditure by age and gender is not available. The table shows total hospital and community health services (HCHS) expenditure, split by age band, for 2002–03.
	
		2002–03 HCHS expenditure by age band
		
			  HCHS expenditure (£ million) HCHS expenditure per person (£) 
		
		
			 All births 1,433 2,570 
			 Age 0–4 2,146 930 
			 Age 5–15 1,472 211 
			 Age 16–44 7,085 354 
			 Age 45–64 6,545 553 
			 Age 65–74 5,767 1,397 
			 Age 75–84 6,683 2,387 
			 Age 85+ 3,956 4,147 
			 Total 35,087 708

NHS Professionals

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many placements have been secured through NHS Professionals to date, broken down by (a) doctors, (b) nurses and (c) allied professionals.

John Hutton: This information is not held centrally. Since NHS Professionals was established as a Special Health Authority in April 2004, it has secured a total of 935,826 placements, made up of 4,347 doctors, 890,374 nurses and 1,754 allied health professionals. The remainder were administrative and clerical staff.

NHS Staff (Pharmaceutical Company Funding)

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his policy is on hospitals employing nurses and doctors funded wholly or in part by pharmaceutical companies.

John Hutton: The Department's, "Commercial Sponsorship(Ethical Standards for the NHS", a copy of which is available in the Library, clearly defines the steps to be taken by all national health service bodies and staff involved in any collaborative partnership with outside industry. NHS employers have to satisfy themselves that sponsorship arrangements are properly conducted and are in the best interests of the NHS. They must ensure that monitoring arrangements are established so that all sponsorship deals are documented and audited. Where collaborative partnerships involve a pharmaceutical company then the proposed arrangements must comply fully with the Medicines (Advertising) Regulations 1994 (regulation 21 'inducements and hospitality').

NHS Staff Profile

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of NHS (a) nurses, (b) doctors and (c) other staff are from (i) other EU countries, (ii) Commonwealth countries and (iii) other countries.

John Hutton: The information requested is not collected centrally.

Patient Education

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research is being undertaken into patient education and long-term condition self-management strategies.

Melanie Johnson: The expert patients programme, funded by the Department, provides group based training on self management and self care to people with long term conditions. A randomised controlled trial is under way to evaluate its effectiveness. This is due to report in a year's time.

Primary Care

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the connection between the level of deprivation in an area and the quality of its primary care facilities; and if he will place in the Library the research and evidence on which this assessment is based.

John Hutton: The Department is not aware of any formal research on levels of deprivation and the quality of primary care facilities. Decisions on the allocation of resources to support improvements to the primary care built environment are taken by primary care trusts (PCTs) on the basis of local knowledge of service need and other factors including levels of deprivation within their communities. Locally focused research may have been undertaken by some PCTs to support this function.
	The targeting of the national health service local improvement finance trust implementation programme is intended to make a major contribution to investment need within deprived communities.

Rare Diseases (Funding)

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding streams are available to organisations seeking to research medical treatment for rare diseases.

Melanie Johnson: The main agency through which the Government support medical and clinical research is the Medical Research Council (MRC). The MRC is an independent body, funded by the Department of Trade and Industry via the Office of Science and Technology. The MRC always welcomes high quality applications for support into any aspect of human health and these are judged in open competition with other demands on funding.
	The Department allocates over 75 per cent. of its research and development budget to national health service organisations, some of which conduct research related into rare diseases.
	The Department does not allocate funds directly to charities for research; nor does the MRC normally do so.

Regional Public Health

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the estimated public expenditure on the (a) regional public health observatories and (b) regional public health groups was in England in the latest year for which figures are available.

Melanie Johnson: In 2003–04, expenditure on the regional public health observatories was £3,334 million and expenditure on the regional public health groups was £11,929 million.

School Nurse Service

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many school nurses have been employed in each of the last 10 years.

John Hutton: Information is not available on the number of school nurses employed in the national health service in each of the last 10 years. The Government collected information on the school nursing workforce in the September 2003 non-medical workforce census but this information was incomplete. Reliable information will be available from the September 2004 workforce census and we intend to publish the data in February 2005.

Skills for Health

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding Skills for Health has received in each financial year since April 2002.

John Hutton: This is a matter for Skills for Health, as it is an independent United Kingdom-wide organisation, which receives funding from all four UK health departments, as well as other bodies. The hon. Member may wish to contact Ms Chris Hannah, Chair of the Skills for Health board.

St. George's Hospital (Walk-in Centre)

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients have been treated at the NHS walk-in centre at St. George's Hospital in each year since it was opened.

Stephen Ladyman: The Tooting national health service walk-in centre, based in the grounds of St. George's hospital, is the responsibility of the Wandsworth primary care trust. The centre officially opened in April 2000 and data on attendance are available from May 2000. These are shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Period Attendances 
		
		
			 May 2000 to December 2000 10,221 
			 January 2001 to December 2001 26,220 
			 January 2002 to December 2002 31,447 
			 January 2003 to December 2003 39,970 
			 January 2004 to October 2004 35,333 
			 Total activity since opening 143,191

Tuberculosis/Hepatitis

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his estimate is of the cost of (a) the mobile screening service for tuberculosis and (b) all screening services for tuberculosis in the latest year for which figures are available.

Melanie Johnson: National health service mobile chest radiography services for tuberculosis screening were disbanded in the early 1980s.
	The Health Protection Agency does not collect data on costs associated with screening services for tuberculosis.

Waiting Lists/Times

John Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients in (a) Solihull parliamentary constituency and (b) the Borough of Solihull have waited for more than six months for foot and ankle surgery in 2004.

Stephen Ladyman: holding answer 9 December 2004
	This information is not available in the format requested.
	The table shows the time waited for foot and ankle surgery for patients within Solihull Primary Care Trust, which includes residents from the Solihull constituency and the Borough of Solihull, during 2003–04.
	
		Waiting list and booked cases: count of finished in-year admission, distribution of time waited for foot and ankle surgery for Solihull PCT in national health service hospitals in England 2003–04
		
			  Foot and ankle surgery 
		
		
			 Time waited  
			 Under 3 months 72 
			 3 to 6 months 77 
			 6 months and over 23 
			   
			 Total admissions 173 
			 Mean days 151 
			 Median days 109 
		
	
	Notes:
	Ungrossed data
	Figures have not been adjusted for shortfalls in data, i.e. that data are ungrossed.
	Time waited
	Time waited statistics from HES are not the same as the published waiting list statistics. HES provides counts and time waited for all patients admitted to hospital within a given period, whereas the published waiting list statistics count those waiting for treatment on a specific date and how long they have been on the waiting list. Also, HES calculates the time waited as the difference between the admission and decision to admit dates. Unlike published waiting list statistics, this is not adjusted for self-deferrals or periods of medical/social suspension.
	Finished in-year admissions
	A finished in-year admission is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider, excluding admissions beginning before 1 April at the start of the data year. Please note that admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year.
	Source:
	Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health.